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BIBLE TALKS 


ON- 


THE NEW LIFE IN CHRIST 



WMi u. Norton 

Baptist Pastor, Fort Valley, Georgia. 
Author of “Bible Talks to Young Christians” 


“If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things 
have passed away; behold, all things are become new.”— 
2nd Cor. 5:17. 




IiOTISYILIiE, KY. 

BAPTIST BOOK CONCERN. Inc. 
ISCi 


4 



















i. i H"? A wv ^ONQRESS 

Anr,t®$ ^waived 

SEP 16 1904 

[ Oooyrfght Entry 





Copyrighted, 1904, 

BY 

THE BAPTIST BOOK CONCERN 







' 





CONTENTS 


INTRODUCTION. 


11 


LESSON I. 

IN CHRIST. 

Spiritual union with Christ. A new creature and a new 
life. All who are in Christ live by his life and are 
complete in Him . 16 

LESSON II. 

THE NEW CREATURE. 

The “new” and the “old man.” Born again and conver¬ 
sion. The new birth makes us new creatures, and 
leads to new lives. 25 


LESSON III. 

LOVE TO CHRIST. 

Love is proof of the new birth. “Lovest thou me?” 
Love is the motive power of the new life. The saved 
work from love. 32 

♦ 

LESSON IV. 

SAVED BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH. 

Sins of believers imputed to Christ and His righteous¬ 
ness to them. Sources of life and salvation in Christ, 
outside of themselves—all of grace. Faith unites to 

Christ and receives of His fullness. 45 

5 









6 Contents . 

LESSON V. 

OBEDIENCE OF LOVE. 

The new life produces new living. Obedience the evi¬ 
dence of new life, and fruit of love. All who love 
are born of God. What love does. 59 

LESSON VI. 

KEPT OF GOD. 

The foundation of life and keeping power of new creat¬ 
ures outside of themselves. Christ is their life and 
God is their Keeper.. 74 

LESSON VII. 

SAVED TO WOEK. 

New creatures are created to do good works. What 
these good works are in which new creatures walk. 85 


LESSON VIII. 

GOOD WOBKS REWAEDED. 

Works tried by fire; if abide rewarded, if burned, suf¬ 
fer loss. Saved as through fire. Know and obey the 
Bible. 95 


LESSON IX. 

KEEP YOURSELVES IN LOVE. 

If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my 

love. Know all the Lord says, and do it.106 

1 ' , 

LESSON X. 

ABIDING IN CHRIST. 

New creatures are in Christ and Christ is in them. By 
conscious faith they receive all they need from Him, 
and are made free by Him.116 







Contents. 


7 


LESSON XI. 

RISEN WITH CHRIST. 

New creatures are made dead to sin and the law.—Alive 
to Christ. Buried and raised again in baptism. Seek 
those things which are above.129 

LESSON XII. 

YOKE OF BONDAGE. 

New creatures not under the law, but under grace. 
Should never turn from their liberty in Christ... 139 

LESSON XIII. 

FRUITLESS HEARERS. 

'As men hear the Word, so they are. Four classes of 
hearers: thoughtless, emotional, worldly and pious. 
Disobedient are chastened in love, for their profit. .150 

LESSON XIV. 

HIGH CALLING IN CHRIST. 

Forgetting the past press toward the mark of the high 
calling in Christ. Sin hinders. Repentance and 

faith perpetual. Righteous in Christ.163 

LESSON XV. 

ALL SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS IN CHRIST. 

Chosen in Christ to be holy, predestinated to the adop¬ 
tion of children, redeemed by His blood and made 
accepted in Christ. Blessed with all spiritual bless¬ 
ings.177 

LESSON XVI. 

ENRICHED TO ALL BOUNTIFULNESS. 

Whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. On the first day 
of the week lay by as prospered. Bring in all the 
tithes. Windows of heaven opened. Put the Bible 
into practice, . ...190 






8 


Contents. 


LESSON XVII. 

COMPLETE IN CHRIST. 

All fullness dwells in Christ. New creatures one with 


Christ, and receive of His fullness. Live in Christ 
as they received Him.204 


LESSON XVIII. 

JOY IN GOD. 

Joys of salvation. Be not anxious. Fullness of 
joy.....217 


LESSON XIX. 

CHRIST IN THE BELIEVER. 

Prove yourselves, if Christ be in you. Dead to sin and 
alive to Christ. Christ manifests Himself to the lov¬ 
ing and obedient.231 


LESSON XX. 

FAITH IN GOD. 

Faith includes belief and trust. Great possibilities of 
faith. Succeed only by faith.248 

LESSON XXI. 

CHRISTIAN ASSURANCE. 

Full confidence and freedom from doubt. Full assur¬ 
ance of understanding, of faith and hope. Assured 
that I live by faith in Christ, and that He lives in 
me. Present and eternal salvation by grace through 
Christ..264 


LESSON XXII. 

MORE THAN CONQUERORS. 

God gives us the victory, and makes us more than con¬ 
querors ; and causeth us always to triumph in Christ. 
Take the whole armor of God. Triumph over self, the 







Contents. 


0 


world, and Satan, by yielding up self to Christ, and 
by abiding in Him.286. 


LESSON XXIII. 


ALL THINGS NEW. 

New destiny, aims, tastes, and life. What Christ can 
do to seve,. keep and purify.303 


LESSON XXIV. 

FOREVER WITH THE LORD. 

With Christ. Like Christ. The New Life perfected..318 





's»v 




INTRODUCTION. 


FTER SOME YEARS of absence I 
returned to my old field of labor, 
and immediately sought my old 
Sunday School class. The teach¬ 
er was absent, and I was requested to take 
charge of it again till he should return. The 
number had largely increased, and % those who 
were present of the old class had grown men, 
while there were present a goodly number of 
equally beautiful young women. When I had 
renewed the old acquaintance, and obtained 
their consent for me to lead the class, Tasked 
and found that the entire class were church 
members. Then I asked how many of them 
felt that they loved and trusted Christ as their 
Savior, and they all answered that they loved 
Him. 

The faces of many grew red when I pressed 
the question upon each in turn as to what evi¬ 
dence they had in their experiences and lives 
that they really were new creatures in Christ. 
Some answered very doubtfully, while others 
pointed mainly to their love for Christ and 
their hope through His death. They told me 
that their teacher had never put any questions 
to the class; but he was so beautiful in his il- 

11 



12 The New Life in Christ. 

lustrations, recited such lovely poetry, and 
abounded in so many classic quotations, and 
told such interesting stories about Eastern 
countries and their habits, that they had a glo¬ 
rious intellectual feast every Sunday. They 
were always sorry when the half hour was over. 

I told them I purposed to take the Bible as my 
text-book, and study it to see what Jesus says, 
that they might know and believe all He says, 
and do all He commands. This would probably 
not be as beautiful and entertaining as their 
teacher’s talks; but it would be the means of 
making th^m strong, pure, useful and happy 
Christians, and it would be far more pleasing 
to Christ. Some hesitated when I proposed that 
the class take as their motto, “What does Jesus 
say?” and that they would promise to believe 
and try to do all He says in the Bible. 

Some of them thought it not necessary to 
bind themselves up so closely by promises which 
no one ever had kept. While others said, it 
had been the rule of their lives for years to first 
ask: “What does the Bible say?” and then it 
had been their fixed purpose to try to do all it 
says do; and they were glad to begin the study 
of the Bible with that promise Quite a large 
list of names went on the new class roll, while 
others asked for more time to consider what 
the promise really meant. 


/ 


Introduction. 


13 


The time was granted, and I explained that 
the promise simply meant that we were yet 
willing to do what we had promised onr Lord 
when we first gave ourselves to Him, to be His 
servants, to love, obey and follow Him. No true 
Christian ought to be willing to be or do any 
less; and by doing this they would be enabled 
to live close to Christ, be filled with the Holy 
Spirit, guided by the Word of God, and live to 
His glory. 

One of the class thought it would require 
a genuine Christian to keep a promise of that 
kind; and in his opinion but few professed 
Christians ever attempt to live after that rule. 
It seems that miany trust Christ to save them, 
but when saved, care very little about His 
teachings and commands. But he did wane to 
change his life and try more faithfully to serve 
the Lord. 

It was asked if we were to understand by, 
“What does Jesus sav?” simply what He said 
while on earth, or what the Bible teaches? 

I told them that Jesus said, “When the Spirit 
of truth is come, He will guide you into all 
truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but 
whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: 
and He will show you things to come. He shall 
glorify Me; for He shall receive of mine, and 
show it unto you. All things that the Father 
hath are mine.” So we believe that the entire 


14 


The New Life in Christ. 


New Testament was given by the Holy Spirit 
to show unto us the things of Christ, and to 
teach us what Jesus says. We are to take all 
that the apostles wrote by inspiration of the 
Holy Spirit concerning Christ and His will, 
as the Word of God, and of equal authority 
with the words spoken by Jesus Himself. All 
Scripture is given by inspiration of the Spirit, 
and is the infallible Word of God. W T e simply 
promise to receive, believe and obey it as such. 

Some of the class were not willing to make 
this promise, but all consented to remain with 
the class, if not required to put their names 
on the new roll. They all joined in an earnest 
prayer for the guidance of the Holy Spirit in 
the study of the Word of God, and that He 
would give them hearts willing to know and do 
all that Jesus has said, and there were many 
moist eyes when it was over. I told the class 
that we would study the new life of new creat¬ 
ures in Christ. “If any man be in Christ he is 
a new creature; old things are passed away; 
behold, all things are become new.” 

We will first consider what it is to be in 
Christ, and will depend upon the Bible for our 
information. Our earnest desire shall be to 
find out, What does the Lord say? When this 
is clearly understood, we are mutually bound 
by our promises to believe it, and faithfully try 
to do it. The vows of Christ are already upon 


Introduction. 


15 


US, we gave ourselves wholly to Him when we 
experienced the forgiveness of sins, and we 
publicly declared this fact when we were buried 
with him in baptism, and raised with him in 
newness of life. “If we receive the witness of 
men, the witness of God is greater;” and “he 
that believeth not God hath made Him a liar, 
because he believeth not the record that God 
gave of His Son.” ’To you who believe in Christ 
we teach these things; “that ye may know that 
ye have eternal life, and ye may believe on the 
name of the Son of God.” That you may have 
stronger faith, a delightful assurance of eternal 
ufe, and a loving obedience to Christ. 


LESSON I. 


IN CHRIST. 


0 


F HIM ARE ye in Christ Jesus, who of 
God is made unto us wisdom, and right¬ 
eousness, and sanctification, and re¬ 
demption.”—1 Cor. 1:30. 

“According as He hath chosen us in Him be¬ 
fore the foundation of the world, that we should 
be holy and without blame before Him in love; 
having predestinated us unto the adoption of 
children, by Jesus Christ to Himself, according 
to the good pleasure of His will.”—Eph. 1:4 
and 5. 

After reading these and other kindred pas¬ 
sages of Scripture, and offering earnest prayer 
for guidance of the Holy Spirit, Mack Norman 
asked if there were not many in the churches 
who are not in Christ? 


“By their fruits ye shall know them,” Jesus 
says; and “A good man out of the good treasure 
of his heart brings forth that which is good; 

16 


In Christ. 


17 


and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his 
heart brings forth that which is evil.” The 
character and lives of many church members 
manifest so little holiness, blamelessness, and 
love, that it is difficult to believe they are new 
creatures in Christ; who should manifest that 
they are in Christ by the pure, blameless and 
loving acts of their lives. There is no room for 
mistake or doubt on this point; “For of thorns 
men do not gather figs., nor of a bramble bush 
gather they grapes.” “Every tree is known 
by his own fruit;” and the fruits of the Spirit, 
such as love, joy, peace, long suffering, holi¬ 
ness, and blamelessness, do not come from an 
ungodly life; and neither do the worldly, flesh¬ 
ly, ungodly, sinful acts of many professed 
Christians come from the new creature in 
Christ. It is a sad and dangerous thing when 
a church member lives the same old life he 
lived before he professed to be in Christ. 

Will Harrison: “What is meant by ‘be in 
Christ V ” 


To be in Christ means that there is a spirit¬ 
ual union between the believer and Christ, and 
that he has been made a new creature by the 
Holy Spirit, and lives a new life. Believers are 
in Christ as the result of God’s having “chosen 
us in Him before the foundation of the world, 
2 


18 


The New Life in Christ . 


that we should be holy and without blame be¬ 
fore Him in love;” and because they were 
“predestinated to the adoption of children by 
Jesus Christ.” This grace was freely bestowed 
upon them in Christ, “ in whom we have re¬ 
demption through His blood, the forgiveness of 
sins, according to the riches of His grace.” 
While dead in trespasses and sins the Spirit 
quickened them in Christ and created them new 
creatures in Him “unto good works, which God 
hath before ordained that we should walk in 
them.” 

So new creatures are in Christ by reason of 
the eternal choice and foreordination of God 
in Christ; and their new birth and union by 
faith with Christ are from the same infinite 
source. “God who is rich in mercy, for His 
great love wherewith He hath loved us,” saved 
us by grace through faith, having made us alive 
from spiritual death by the quickening power 
of the Holy Spirit. 

Burt Norman : “I feel that I have been 
changed in heart, and do trust Christ as my 
Savior; but I find it hard always to do what 
I known I ought to do. ‘If any man be in 
Christ, he is a new creature; old things are 
passed away; behold, all things have become 
new.’ My greatest difficulty is in living a per- 


In Christ. 


19 


fectlv new life. How can we live this new life, 
and always do what Jesus says?” 

New creatures live new lives as the result 
of being in Christ. Out of Christ and separate 
from Him there is no new life, no righteous¬ 
ness, and no power in them to live and work 
for Christ. He is their life, and *they live only 
in Him, and have hidden sources of grace, 
strength, and spiritual power supplied to them 
all the time from Him. Depending upon Him 
through faith, they receive from His infinite 
fullness all the blessings and help they need. 
All the sources of their new life are in Christ, 
and are hid with Him in God. “Ye are dead, 
and your life is hid with Christ in God. When 
He who is our life shall appear, then shall ye 
also appear with Him in glory.” 

Will Harrison : “I have heard some preach¬ 
ers speak of the hidden life in Christ as being 
the special privilege of a favored few, who have 
attained to a higher Christian experience than 
others.” 

But the Holy Spirit says of all Christians: 
“Ye are dead and your life is hid with Christ 
in God.” This hidden life then is not the pe¬ 
culiar privilege and experience of only a fa¬ 
vored few; but is the happy condition of all 


20 The New Life in Christ . 

who are in Christ. Jesus says: “Those whom 
thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them 
is lost.” “No man is able to pluck them out 
of my Father’s hand.” “Holy Father, keep 
through thy name those whom thou hast given 
me.” The very least believer in Christ is one 
with Him, and partakes of His infinite fullness; 
and his life is as really hid with Christ in God, 
as that of the greatest and best. The one lives 
the hidden life as really as the other. Some no 
doubt realize more of the present blessings and 
spiritual power of this life than others, be¬ 
cause they yield themselves up to the leading 
of the Spirit, and are more obedient to Christ 
than others; but the lives of all believers are 
hid with Christ in God, and they are all kept 
by the power of God, and are supplied in all 
things from the hidden sources in Christ. 

Miss Mary Long: “If all believers have the 
same privileges in Christ, why is there such 
differences in their experiences, happiness and 
usefulness ?” 

Many new creatures who clearly know the 
Lord, do not understand their great privileges 
and blessings in Christ. They seem not to re¬ 
alize that, as new creatures, they are in Christ, 
and by faith are one with Him, and receive 


In Christ. 


21 


supplies from His infinite fullness, and are 
complete in Him. 

By faith in Christ all believers receive the 
benefits of His perfect righteousness, and are 
justified through faith in Him. He is the sat¬ 
isfaction for their sins, having suffered for 
them, and all who believe in Him are saved. 
“Christ is the end of the law for righteous¬ 
ness to all who believe .’ 7 “For ye are not under 
the law, but under grace.” “There is therefore 
now no condemnation to them who are in Christ 
Jesus.” “If God be for us who can be against 
us;” and, “w T ho shall lay anything to the charge 
of God’s elect. It is God who justifies: who 
is he that condemns? It is Christ that died, 
yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at 
the right hand of God, who also makes interces¬ 
sion for us.” Because Christ suffered for our 
guilt, and died our death (our sins having 
been put upon Him) by faith in Him the bene¬ 
fits of His righteousness are put upon us, and 
we are justified through His righteousness and 
fully saved. We have in Christ an eternal jus¬ 
tification through His infinite righteousness; 
for there is “no condemnation to them who are 
in Christ,” and they “shall never come into 
condemnation.” 

The new creature is weak in himself; but Je¬ 
sus says, “My strength is made perfect in weak¬ 
ness.” By His divine power those who are in 


22 The New Life in Clvrist. 

Christ are made able to overcome the evil one, 
and to live and' labor for Him. Without Christ 
they can do nothing; and they may neglect to 
depend upon Him, and by conscious faith draw 
from Him, and being strengthened by His in¬ 
finite might do all things through Him. 

Will Harrison : “It seems strange that there 
are such riches of grace and blessings in Christ 
for all believers, and so many fail to realize the 
fullness of their privileges in Him!” 

Yes, “ye are complete in Him.” To all who 
are in Him, Christ becomes their worthiness; 
and by His infinite righteousness and the glo¬ 
rious merit of His atoning death, all who are in 
Him have access to the Father, and are ad¬ 
mitted into His presence as children of God, 
and their prayers are heard and answered 
through the worthiness of Christ. 

Again, all who are in Christ receive of His 
fullness and are complete in Him. When they 
learn by happy experience what it means to be 
in Christ, and are able to realize that they are 
personally in Him, they will then understand 
that they live by Him in all things. Having been 
justified and saved by Him, as the branch in 
the vine, they live by His life, and are strong in 
His strength, righteous in His merit, and are 
safe in Him, receiving grace, pardon, spirit- 


In Christ. 


23 


uality and all they need to enable them to live 
pure, true and useful lives. 

Lee Wallace spoke more to himself, say¬ 
ing: “Christians who live such lives and real¬ 
ize such blessings in Christ are truly the happy 
ones! Why may not all new creatures so live?” 

All may so live, who are in Christ, and all 
ought to live happy, joyful Christian lives. He 
saves them fully, and fills them with His love, 
and dwells with and in them, and they are the 
temjple of the Holy Spirit. He cares for all 
their needs, bears all their burdens, and makes 
all things work their good. Surely in Christ 
they ought to have fullness and joy. 

All who are in Christ are new creatures, and 
live new lives. They have put off the old man 
with his deeds, and have put on the new man, 
and having been raised from spiritual death, 
they seek those things which are above where 
Christ is. Also they have His spirit, who wit¬ 
nesses with their spirits that they are the chil¬ 
dren of God. By yielding themselves up to the 
leading of the Spirit they mortify the deeds 
of the body, and are filled with love, joy, peace, 
long-suffering, gentleness, and all the fruits of 
the Spirit. A Spirit-filled life is a life filled 
with all these graces, or fruits of the Spirit; 
and as the Spirit dwells in all who are in 


24 


The New Life in Christ . 


Christ, then all ought to be filled with them. 
Are you each and all filled with love, joy, peace, 
gentleness, meekness, and all the other fruits 
of the Spirit? 

When this question had gone round the class, 
most of them admitted that these fruits of the 
Spirit were possessed by them to a very small 
degree. Then followed an earnest prayer for 
the Holy Spirit’s work in each heart and life, 
and that each one might be enabled to yield 
fully to the will and work of the Spirit; that 
they might walk in the Spirit, and abiding in 
Christ, might be filled with His fullness. 

There was much tenderness and many tears 
on the part of the old class, and some of the 
new members, and they expressed their great 
pleasure in having their former teacher back 
to lead them into clearer knowledge of Jesus 
and His word. A deep thoughtfulness filled 
the class, and they left the room with reluctant 
feet, and many asked special prayer that they 
might live closer to Christ, and know and do all 
He commands. 


LESSON II. 


THE NEW CREATURE. 

F ANY MAN be in Christ, he is a new 
creature; old things are passed away; 
behold, all things are become new.”— 
2 Cor. 5:17. 

The Bible abounds in references to the new 
birth, and assures us that, “Ye must be borii 
again.” It speaks of the “old man” and the 
“new man,” of being “in the flesh” and “in the 
Spirit,” and in many ways it makes a wide dis¬ 
tinction between those who have been born of 
the Spirit and such as have not been born again. 
The regenerated are called “new creatures,” 
are “in Christ,” “old things” have passed away, 
and all things have “become new” with them. 

Neil Johnson: “When the evangelist held 
his tent meeting in the city he said a great deal 
about quitting wrong doing, joining the church, 
doing good, and going to heaven; but he never 
said anything about the regenerating power of 
the Holy Spirit, A friend of mine told her hus- 



2G 


The Neiv Life in Christ. 


band that she felt something more was needed 
than to quit her meanness, join the church, do 
good and go to heaven; for she had done them 
all the best she could, and they had brought 
her no peace with God, nor had they made any 
change in her sinful heart and inward life. Her 
husband said: ‘That is all the preachers re¬ 
quire, and they ought to know the wav.’ I 
told her she must believe in Christ to be saved, 
and urged her to seek Him and trust in His 
merit for salvation. She said her old heart 
would not love and trust in Christ, and she 
needed a new heart; and I told her to seek it 
from the Lord, for He alone could give her a 
new heart.” 

I often wonder how any one who has sought- 
and found the Lord can lead blinded and lost 
sinners to depend upon their own poor works, 
and the joining of the church as the means to 
carry them to heaven. How any new creature 
can lose sight of the regenerating work of the 
Holy Spirit, by whose power dead sinners are 
quickened into spiritual life, made new crea¬ 
tures, born into the family of God, and united 
by faith to Christ, is more than I am able to 
explain. Such preaching seems to me like the 
blind leading the blind, and I fear that the 
led and the leaders are making for the ditch. 
For without faith in Christ there is no salva- 


New Creature. 


27 


tion, and there is no faith without the new 
birth. 

Lee Wallace: “Many speak of conversion 
and the new birth as the same thing, and use 
the words interchangeably. What is their 
Scriptural difference ?” 

Conversion is the new creature turning from 
wrong doing to the service of God; and every 
time he does wtrong he should turn from it and 
do the right. It is the result of the new birth, 
and promotes the new life of new creatures. 
There can be no true Scriptural conversion 
without the new birth first; for when they have 
quit their meanness, joined the church, and 
done as much better as they can, they are the 
same ungoldy persons they were before, and 
live their same worldly, sinful lives in the 
church of God. They cannot live new lives 
because they have not been made new creatines, 
and have no new natures. They are not in 
Christ and do not depend upon Him for life 
and salvation; but depend upon their quitting 
sin, joining the church, and doing good to save 
them. Heaven can be reached only by one way, 
by grace through faith in Christ and not by 
works; but if it could be entered by works, it 
would require very different works from such 


28 


The New Life in Christ . 


as come from an nnregenerate and unloving 
heart. 

Will Harrison: “Conversion follows the 
new birth, is repentance before or after the 
new birth ?” 

In a state of nature we are all dead in tres¬ 
passes and sins, and need to be quickened and 
made spiritually alive before we can feel and 
act spiritually, and live a new life. When a 
sinner has been quickened into life, he sees his 
sin, and feels his guilt, and his great wicked¬ 
ness in the sight of the Lord, and he realizes 
that he is helpless and hopelessly lost; and 
this new life in him causes him to hate sin and 
gladly give it up, and turn to God seeking par¬ 
don and salvation through Christ. When he 
trusts Christ as his Savior, and is accepted of 
God in Him, he rejoices in the pardon of sin 
and peace with God; and from his deep love to 
Christ for His saving grace, he gladly gives up 
all wrong and is willing to do all that his Lord 
commands. 

This change by the Spirit takes away the old 
enmity to God and puts love to Him in Its 
place. It removes the love of sin, and puts in 
its place the hatred of sin and love of holi¬ 
ness. It gives new aims, motives and purposes, 
and these control the life and make it new. 


New Creature. 


29 


With the new nature comes faith in Christ, 
peace with God and hope of heaven. The new 
motive of love to God moves new creatures to 
live new lives in His service; while the love of 
Christ constrains them to love Him and obey 
and please Him in all they do. Their new aim 
is to please and glorify God, and their turning 
away from all siu and giving themselves wholly 
to His service is a new experience. All things 
are become new to them as the result of the 
new birth by the Holy Spirit. 

There can be no mistake as to the necessity 
of the new birth; for without it there is no new 
creature, no living being in Christ, no salva¬ 
tion, no true hope of heaven, and no new life. 
Those without it can never see nor enter the 
kingdom of heaven. It is therefore very impor¬ 
tant for us to know that we have Scriptural 
evidences of the new birth, that we are new 
creatures and are living new lives in Christ, 
It is a question of salvation, of life and death, 
and we can not afford to make a mistake in 
this matter. Have we new natures, and do our 
new lives in Christ prove that we are new 
creatures? Are we living the same worldly, 
selfish, sinful lives we lived before we pro¬ 
fessed faith in Christ, and united with the 
church? Have the old ungodly lives we once 
lived changed into loving, obedient, spiritual 


30 


The New Life in Christ. 


lives in Christ? and are they spent lovingly 
seeking to know and do His will? 

Miss Mary Long: “I have been led to be¬ 
lieve that many church members are not new 
creatures, because they live like the world and 
manifest the old life instead of the new. It 
seems to me a fearful thing to pretend to belong 
to the church and yet be out of the church! 
Are they not of those whose last state is worse 
than the first?” 

Their condition is pitiful; like the foolish 
virgins, going even up to death thinking 
themselves on their way to heaven, while they 
are going to hell. Their lives and characters 
are foul spots in the churches where they pre¬ 
tend to hold membership. Being unrenewed 
and unsaved they have no part nor lot in the 
matter; but are in the gall of bitterness and the 
bonds of iniquity, and are given over to per¬ 
ish unless they repent and obtain forgiveness 
through Christ. Such members are described 
as clouds without water, trees without fruit, 
twice dead, plucked up by the roots; raging 
waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; 
wandering stars, to whom is reserved the 
blackness of darkness forever. These mem¬ 
bers by their unrenewed lives misrepresent 
the grace of God, and the saving power of 


2sTew Creature. 


31 


Christ, presenting their fleshy, worldly lives as 
examples of what the grace of Christ and the 
power of the Holy Spirit can do, by the belief 
and obedience of the truth, in saving sinners 
and making them pure and holy. Such lives 
are libels on Christianity, and are false wit¬ 
nesses for Christ, denying His power, and 
practically saying to the world that there is 
nothing in Christianity. While those who are 
new creatures and live new lives manifest the 
saving power of Christ, and are living examples 
of saving grace. 

Let me ask again, are we new creatures living 
new lives? Or are we living the same ungodly 
lives which we lived before we came into the 
church? Are we moved and governed by new 
principles which lead us to live new lives; or 
do the selfish, worldly, wicked principles of the 
past lead us to live in ungodliness and sin? 
Are we doing anything to bring others to 
Christ; to spread His kingdom and save the 
lost? Do our lives and influences help Christ 
and His churches in saving souls; or do they 
help the world and Satan ruin souls? Are we 
new creatures or old? Living new lives or old? 
Where do we really belong? 

When the prayer was over the class left the 
room with few words, and with deep, earnest 
thoughtfulness on every face. 


LESSON III. 


“LOVE TO CHRIST.” 

OVEST THOU me?”—John 21:17. 

“The love of Christ constraineth us.” 
—2 Cor. 5 :14. 

Nearly half of the class wereabsent from 
the room at this meeting. Some had signified 
their purpose to give up their attendance on 
its meetings till their eloquent and entertain¬ 
ing teacher returned. Some of those present 
thought that the questions and talks might be 
made less personal and more intellectual, and 
by that means bring them all back. But a 
large majority of them favored continuing as 
they had begun, and so it was settled. 

Neil Johnson, with deep feeling, said he 
knew that he trusted in Christ, and had hope 
of heaven through Him and His atoning death, 
and had no doubt of his new birth; yet he was 
painfully conscious that he was not living the 
new life as he ought. When he joined the 
church he was exceedingly happy in obeying 
his Savior, and in the consciousness of his ac- 
32 



“Love to Christ” 


33 


ceptance in Him; but since then he had not 
made very rapid growth in the knowledge and 
grace of Christ, and was so happy to have a 
teacher who would instruct him in the doc¬ 
trines and duties of true and vital Christianity. 
He wanted to live a new life in Christ, and 
reach the fullness of its possibilities. He had 
lived a new life in many things since that day 
when he found Christ, had never been £he 
same Neil since, and he never could be; but 
he did want to live closer to Christ and know 
and do all He says. 

I told him I was happy to hear his experi¬ 
ence and to know that he was serving the Lord 
in love and anxious to serve Him better. I 
hoped to help him to clearer views of the doc¬ 
trines of grace and the commands of Christ, 
that he might grow into a more useful and 
happy Christian life. 

Burt Norman said, that he had lived an out¬ 
wardly correct religious life, and had enjoyed 
much of the Savior’s presence, but the lesson 
of the last Sunday and the one before had 
opened up to his mind such great possibilities 
in Christian life that it seemed to him he had 
only just begun in the new life. He was so 
happy to have these new practical Bible lessons 
to draw his mind away from the world’s busi¬ 
ness and pleasure, and turn it to Christ. He 
s 


34 


The New Life'in Christ. 


had determined to try to know, “What does 
Jesus say” about everything in life, and try to 
do all He says. This rule had already made 
some important changes in his life and business. 
He believed that the Bible, by the power of 
the Holy Spirit, would lead us, if we would fol¬ 
low it, into the fullness of the new life. He 
wanted to know more of it than he had ever 
learned yet. 

Albert Edwards said, he had trusted in 
Christ some years before, and for a while had 
lived a happy Christian life; but of late years 
he had drifted back towards his old life, and 
he was fully eonscious now that he was not 
living the new life he ought to live. He had 
seen so clearly the newness of life in which all 
Christians ought to live, and had been living 
so far below it that he was awfully afraid that 
he was not a new creature. If he had not 
been born again, he wanted to find it out be¬ 
fore it was hopelessly too late; and if a Chris¬ 
tian, he wanted to be led into a strong, healthy, 
useful Christian life. 

I told him that many Christians seem not to 
realize that they are in Christ, and receive of 
His infinite fullness and are complete in Him. 
I was often sad because I could not lead Chris¬ 
tians to understand their safety, support and 


“Love to Christ” 35 

fullness of strength in Christ. Many live 
weak, unsatisfactory and fruitless lives while 
they might be strong in the Lord and in the 
power of His might, full of love, joy, peace, 
spirituality and glorify God by bearing much 
fruit. While in many lives it is difficult to find 
fruit enough to prove that they are really in 
Christ. 

Mack Norman : “I feel that I do really trust 
in Christ as my Savior and am happy in Him; 
but I would like to examine some of the Bible 
evidences which prove one to be in Christ and 
in a saved state. You read Jesus’ question to 
Peter at the beginning of the lesson.” 

Others joined in this request, saying they 
were sometimes very doubtful as to their change 
of heart, because they were living more after 
the flesh than after the spirit; while Miss 
Mary Long did not understand how it is possi¬ 
ble for a new creature, from whom old things 
had passed away and all things had become 
new, to go back to the world and live as they 
did when unsaved. 

I told them how Peter had been willing to die 
with Jesus, and had fully believed that, though 
all men might be offended because of Christ, 
he would not. But when the test came he de¬ 
nied his Lord, and cursed and swore that he 


36 The New Life in Christ. 

did not know Jesus. We could never have be¬ 
lieved it possible that he should have done this; 
and we can not tell what a new creature may 
do. 

When Jesus asked, “Simon, son of Jonas, 
lovest thou me?” Peter answered, “Lord, thou 
knowest all things; thou knowest that I love 
thee.” Peter felt that Jesus knew his denial, 
and had known that he would deny Him; and 
that he also knew that he did love Him. Jesus 
knew it, but He wanted a right understand¬ 
ing between Him and Peter; and so He wants 
confessions on our part before consciousness of 
forgiveness and reconciliation. 

Deep down in your consciousness can you 
say: “Lord, thou knowest all things; thou 
knowest that I love thee?” Do you also love the 
brethren, the people of God, as His children? 
By this “we know 1 that we have passed from 
death unto life, because we love the brethren.” 
“Love is of God; and everyone that loveth is 
born of God, and knoweth God.” None love 
Jesus until they have been born again, and all 
who do love Him are new creatures. It is im¬ 
portant to decide whether we love Him or not. 

When we think of Him as the infinitely pure 
and holy God in all of His wisdom, power, 
mercy and justice manifested in human flesh, 
and living a i>ure and sinless life, do we love 
Him? When we remember that in His infinite 


“Love to Christ ” 


37 


love and mercy He left His throne in heaven 
and came to earth, born in the flesh under the 
law, that He might obey it for us; and that He 
might die under its terrible curse to redeem 
us from under the penalty of sin, can we say: 
“Thou knowest that I love thee?” 

Think how He loved you when you were sin¬ 
ful and hating Him, and gave Himself for you. 
How He had all your sins laid on Him, and un¬ 
der the heavy load of your guilt suffered and 
died your death, that you might be saved and 
made righteous in Him; and how can you help 
loving Him? He loved us while we hated Him, 
and died for us and redeemed us from death, 
suffered the punishment due the guilt of our 
sins, and brought us to God. By the Holy 
Spirit He made us new creatures, gave us faith 
to unite us with Himself, pardon, peace, eter¬ 
nal life, a home in heaven, and all the graces 
and blessings of the Spirit, and then asks: 
“Lovest thou me?” 

Oh! what answer does your heart make to 
His question in view of all this love, mercy 
and blessings from Him to you? He is lov¬ 
ingly waiting for your answer to be made in 
pure love lived and acted by you for Him. He 
is at the right hand of the throne of God inter- 
ceeding for you, pleading the merit of His 
atoning blood for your forgiveness and accep¬ 
tance with the Father. He is preparing a place 


38 


The New Life in Christ . 


for you in the Father’s house, and will come for 
you and receive you to Himself that you may 
be with Him forever. 

As you think of these things can you truth¬ 
fully say, “Thou knowest that I love thee?” 
Then you may rejoice and be glad; for all who 
“love are born of God and knoweth God. He 
that loveth not, knoweth not God; for God is 
love.” Our blinded eyes must be opened be¬ 
fore we can see spiritual things, and we must 
have been made alive spiritually before tve can 
exercise the faculties of the new creature. Love 
is of God, and he that loves has been born of 
God; so it is impossible for anyone to love God 
before he has been made a new creature. Love 
to Christ, as also for Christians, is unmistaka¬ 
ble evidence of the new nature, which is the re¬ 
sult of the new birth. 

Will Harrison: “If we are new creatures 
and love Jesus, will not our love show itself 
in our obedience to Him?” 

“The love of Christ constraineth us.” The 
same love which led him when rich to become 
poor for us that we might be rich in Him, leads 
those who love Him to live for Him. “God so 
loved the world that He gave His only begot¬ 
ten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him 
should not perish, but have eternal life.” “For 


“Love to Christ” 


39 


He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew 
no sin; that we might be made the righteousness 
of God in Him.” He laid our sins on Christ 
and He suffered their punishment, that we 
might be righteous through the infinite mercy 
of the perfect righteousness of Christ being 
placed to our account. “God commended His 
love toward us, in that while we were yet sin¬ 
ners, Christ died for us. Much more then, be¬ 
ing justified by His blood, we shall be saved 
from wrath through Him. For if, when we 
were enemies, we were reeconciled to God by 
the death of His Son, much more, being recon¬ 
ciled, we shall be saved by His life.” 

This love of God which led to our salvation 
was shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy 
Spirit when He made us new creatures and 
one with Christ by faith, and waked up a deep 
and abiding love in the new heart for Christ 
which constrains us to hear and obey all His 
commands. Love is the motive power in every 
new life, and we obey from love and not from 
fear. We work from love, while we believe and 
trust in Christ for life and salvaton. 

Miss Mary Long: “Solomon says that the 
fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: 
and I thought that the fear of being lost led us 
to obey God, as well as the hope of being 
saved. I have heard a good many talk about 


40 


The New Life in Christ. 


trying to get to heaven from the fear of being 
lost.” 

Yes, many do seem to think and feel that 
way; bnt Christ has redeemed 11 s from the 
curse of the law, and we are justified by His 
righteousness through faith, and have the for¬ 
giveness of sins through His atoning blood; 
and being fully saved by Him we obey His com¬ 
mands not from any selfish motives, but from 
pure love to Him as our Savior. He saved 
us from death and the eternal pains of the lost, 
and we are drawn to Him and gladly give Him 
ourselves and our services because we love 
Him. Fear is a good thing to wake up the 
sinner to seek the Lord, and it is well for be¬ 
lievers to fear God with a loving filial 
fear; but perfect love casts out all slavish fear. 

The unregenerated and unsaved work to get 
to heaven. They have no love to Christ, nor 
interest by faith in Him; but hope by the mer¬ 
its of their works in some way to bring God 
under obligation to them, and some how to 
gain heaven as a matter of merit, and not of 
grace alone. While new creatures know that 
in themselves they are lost and helpless sin¬ 
ners, and if saved at all it must be through the 
merits of Christ and trust Him alone for salva¬ 
tion. 


“Love to Christ.” 


41 


Miss Hattie Warner: “J once felt that I 
trusted in Christ and loved Him as my Savior. 
I gave up every known wrong, and tried to do 
all He commards, and I was happy in His 
love and service. I was willing to take up my 
cross and follow Him. I delighted in singing: 

“Where He leads me I will follow, 

I’ll go with Him, with Him, all the way.” 

But now I find that I have drifted far back 
to my old life of worldliness. I feel that I do 
love Jesus; but my love is so weak and cold 
and my life has been so far from what it ought 
to be! These Bible lessons have destroyed all 
my worldly enjoyment, and yet I do not feel 
the joy and pleasure in trusting Christ. How 
may I get back close to Jesus and feel His pres¬ 
ence and joy in Him as I once did ? Sometimes 
I fear that I have committed the sin against 
the Holy Spirit, which has no forgiveness.” 

At the close of these words she broke down 
and wept. Others of the class wept with her, 
and there were but few in the room who did 
not enter into deep sympathy with her expe¬ 
rience. I said, “Let us pray,” and we all 
kneeled down and confessed our sins, and told 
the Lord that we were willing to give up every 
wrong and wicked thing, and begged for mercy 


42 


The "New Life in Christ. 


and forgiveness through our Lord Jesus 
Christ. We thanked Him for this tenderness 
of heart and asked for full and true repentance. 

When the prayer was over, many eyes were 
moist and some faces were glowing with joy; 
but Miss Hattie’s face was not fully relieved. 
I said that the sacrifice of God is a broken 
heart, a broken and contrite spirit the Lord 
will not despise. He says, “If any man sin, 
we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus 
Christ the righteous; and He is the satisfac¬ 
tion for our sins.” “If we confess our sins, He 
is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and 
to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 

Miss Hattie said that she was willing to 
confess and forsake all her sins, and she did 
want to realize the joys of salvation again and 
feel that she was accepted in Christ. 

Charles Warner said, that he had lived very 
far from his duty to Christ, and had gone far 
into worldliness and sin. He was not willing 
to give up to drink and vice and go to utter 
ruin, but had gone so for in sin that he was 
not able to give up his evil ways and turn to 
God. Is there any help anywhere for him? 
He had begged the Lord for help, but seemed 
daily to grow worse and go deeper into sin. 
He had found it a fearful thing to depart from 


“Love to Christ.” 


43 


God and go into sin, and wanted to know if 
the Bible told of any help for him. 

Jesus says: “All power is given unto me in 
heaven and in earth.” “Come unto me all ye 
that labor and are heavy laden, and I will 
give yon rest.” Jesus is able to save to the ut¬ 
most all who go to Him;He was sent to “heal 
the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the 
captives and recovering of sight to the blind, 
to set at liberty them that are bruised, to 
preach the acceptable years of the Lord.” His 
power is made perfect in our weakness, and 
things impossible with men are possible with 
God. If we give up every other trust and de¬ 
pend alone on Christ, we shall be saved. 

“I dare not trust the sweetest frame, 
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name, 

On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; 

All other ground is sinking sand.” 

We must build our hopes on nothing less than 
Jesus’ blood and righteousness; and while we 
give up all sin and wrong doing and turn to 
God, we do so looking to Jesus, depending 
upon His atoning blood and gloriously perfect 
righteousness for acceptance with Him. It 
is in Christ we have acceptance with God, and 


44 


The New Life in Christ. 


it is in Him we are blessed with all spiritual 
blessings. 

Miss Hattie sang after the closing prayer: 

“When darkness seems to veil His face, 

I rest on His unchanging grace; 

In every high and stormy gale, 

My anchor holds within the veil; 

On Christ the solid rock I stand; 

All other ground is sinking sand.” 






LESSON IV. 

SAVED BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH. 

B Y GRACE are ye saved through faith., — 
Eph. 2 :8. 

Mack Norman : “What is the mean¬ 
ing of grace in the text? And how does grace 
save the sinner?” 

Grace means the free and undeserved favor 
of God; and this undeserved favor bestows sal¬ 
vation upon sinners as a free and unmerited 
gift. In the unregenerate state we have no 
faith in God nor in Christ; and “without faith 
it is impossible to please God.” All who are in 
an unsaved state are unable to do any works 
pleasing to God so as to cause their salvation; 
and in a saved state it is not necessary that 
we should add anything to the all-sufficient 
atoning merit of Christ to make our salvation 
complete. God made Christ to be sin for us, 
that we might be made the righteousness of 
God in Him. He placed our sins to Christ’s 

45 


46 


The New Life in Christ. 


account, and He suffered their punishment as 
our substitute; and then God places Christ’s 
righteousness to our account, and we receive all 
the benefits of His perfect righteousness. His 
pure human blood poured out in death for us 
atones for all our sins, and blots them out; and 
all who believe in Him are justified through 
the righteousness of Christ, and they are com 
pletely saved by grace through faith in Him. 

Miss Mary Long : “It seems to me that some 
works must be necessary for the salvation of 
a sinner. He must hear the word, repent of sin, 
seek the Lord, believe in Christ; and the Bible 
is full of things commanded to be done.” 

Let us be careful not to make any mistake 
here. Jesus says, teach the baptized believers 
to do all the things Which He has commanded. 
It is a question worth serious thought, whether 
an unregenerated person can hear the word 
of God, seek Christ, believe in Him and be 
saved, in an unregenerated state. Then there 
is no part of salvation unprovided for by 
grace and left to be supplied outside of grace. 
Christ bore all of our sins and put them 
all away; satisfied the whole law and left no 
possible condemnation to them who are in 
Christ. We are justified from all things by 
faith and have peace with God through Christ. 


Saved by Grace Through Faith 


47 


The Holy Spirit quickens and makes us new 
creatures, and He will continue the work He 
has begun till it is complete. We are to trust 
in the merit and satisfaction of Christ, and by 
faith and prayer receive grace, strength and 
help by the Holy Spirit to lovingly know and 
do all that He commands. 

Neil Johnson: “It is hard for me to see 
what part of salvation anyone can find in his 
own works, or where he can find any worth or 
merit in anything he can do upon Which he 
would be willing to risk any part of his sal¬ 
vation !” 


Yes, and how anyone should be willing to 
turn in his dependence away from the perfect 
righteousness of Christ to his own filthy rags 
of personal righteousness, is astonishing to 
contemplate! Then all who depend upon their 
works for salvation are surely lost; for “by 
the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be 
justified in His sightbut we are “justified 
by faith without the deeds of the law.” All 
who believe in Christ are justified and have 
eternal life, and shall not come into condemna¬ 
tion. 

Will Harrison: “There is great difference 
in the practical experience of those saved by 


48 


The New Life in Christ 


grace and those who depend upon works for 
salvation. The one works from love, and the 
other works to get to heaven. They work 
from altogether different motives; and these 
motives distinguish between the saved and the 
unsaved.” 

That is true; the saved rely upon Christ for 
salvation, and are moved by love to Him to 
obey all He commands, while the unsaved re¬ 
ject the perfect righteousness of Christ, and 
depend in part, or wholly, upon the merit of 
their works for salvation. These last have 
much to say about the essentials and non- 
essentials of salvation. They are exceedingly 
careful to do the things which they think are 
essential to salvation; but give very little at¬ 
tention to such things as they think are not es¬ 
sential. While the others believing that faith 
alone is necessary to salvation, trust Christ to 
save them; and because they love Him as their 
Savior, are careful to do all things He has com¬ 
manded The one is moved by selfish motives, 
in all he does, to work to save himself; while 
the other is moved by love to do all his Lord 
says do. 

Neil Johnson: “Those who depend upon 
their works for salvation seem to me to know 


Saved by Grace Through Faitlv. 49 

as little about their own hearts and lives as 
about the Bible.” 

They would not depend upon their works if 
they were not so spirtually blind that they can 
not see their own sinful, lost and helpless 
condition. They do not see their need of a new 
heart, a new nature and a new life to fit them 
for the pure and holy presence of God. If 
their spiritual eyes were open so they could see 
their great need they would be glad to be saved 
by grace through the righteousness of Christ. 

Will Harrison : “Are not many honestly 
expecting to be saved some how through their 
own works—that is are they not so deceived 
that they fully expect to get to heaven that 
way? Was not Bunyan’s early experience of 
that kind?” 

Bunyan says that at one time he thought he 
was saved by his own works, and was well 
satisfied with himself till, “Upon a day the 
good providence of God did cast me to Bedford 
to work on my calling.” While at work one 
day he heard three or four poor women talking 
about the things of God, and he listened and 
heard, but did not understand, for their talk 
was far above and out of his reach. They w T ere 
talking about the new birth, the work of God 

4 


50 


The New Life in Christ. 


in their hearts, and how they had been con¬ 
vinced of their miserable and lost state by na¬ 
ture. They talked of how God had visited their 
souls with His love in Christ, and by what 
promises and Scripture texts they had been 
comforted and supported against the temp¬ 
tations of Satan. They also talked of their 
own wretchedness of heart, their unbelief and 
how they condemned and abhored their own 
righteousness as filthy and insufficient to be 
of any service in saving them. They seemed 
to him to belong to another world and to live 
away from him; and if that was Christianity, 
he saw that he was no Christian. This knowl¬ 
edge plunged him into deep darkness, which 
never left him till he found Christ, and trusted 
in His righteousness and depended upon His 
atoning satisfaction. He learned that he was 
a poor helpless sinner, condemned and lost, and 
he came to Christ believing in His atoning 
death for sin, and depending upon Him for 
life and salvation, and wias justified by God 
through the righteousness of Christ from all 
his present, past and future sins. By faith 
his soul, as a new creature, was united to 
Christ, and this union was for all eternity; and 
the righteousness of Christ brought him as a 
believer an eternal justification. 

The justice of God does not condemn the be¬ 
liever, but pronounces him just in Christ, and 


Saved by Grace Through Faith . 


51 


this brings him an eternal peace with God. 
All the while he is in the flesh the new creature 
feels a sense of his own great personal un- 
worthiness, and an humble distrust of himself; 
yet he has peace with God and a glorious hope 
of heaven through the righteousness of Christ. 
The Holy Spirit by the word of God leads the 
new creature into purity of life, and a grow¬ 
ing likeness to Christ. The sources of spirit¬ 
ual life, righteousness and power are in Christ 
and outside of believers and are not dependent 
upon their personal condition, but upon the in¬ 
finite merit and worthiness of Christ. The 
Holy Spirit forms them into the likeness of 
Christ while they trust in Christ and study to 
know and do all he says in the Bible. 

Albert Edwards: *1 have been led to be¬ 
lieve that good works have much to do with 
our salvation. I have never before studied the 
subject to see what the Bible says about it, but 
trusted Christ for pardon and tried to do 
right so that I might get to heaven. I guess I 
trusted Christ and works both, and when my 
works failed I lost hope.” 

There are many who seem to think that 
salvation is in part by grace through faith, and 
in part by their own merit through works; while 
others seem to depend wholly upon the merit 


52 The New Life in Christ 

of their works. But the Bible teaches 
us that we are saved by grace alone 
as the source, and through faith as the 
instrument. “If by grace, then it is no more 
of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. 
But if it be of works, then then it is no more 
grace: otherwise work is no more work.” So, 
then, all who depend upon works for salvation, 
must look to works alone; and those who look 
to grace, must depend upon grace alone. The 
two will not mix from the very nature of the 
case. It is well for us that His grace is suf¬ 
ficient for all our needs, and that the exceeding 
riches of His grace has been manifested in His 
kindness toward us in the unsearchable riches 
of Christ; for “He that spared not His own 
Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall 
He not with Him also also freely give us all 
things?” “Of His fullness have all w T e re¬ 
ceived,” and “Ye are complete in Him.” 

But those who, like Israel, are going about 
to establish their own righteousness, and will 
not submit themselves to the righteousness of 
God by faith in Christ, cut themselves off from 
all possibility of being saved. For “the just 
shall live by faith.” “Christ is the end of the 
law for righteousness to every one that be¬ 
lieves;” while “by deeds of the law shall no 
flesh be justified in His sight; because all have 
sinned and come short of the glory of God.” 


Saved by Grace Through Faith . 


53 


Lee Wallace: “It is very important that 
we know what faith is, and if we have faith. 
What is faith ?” 


Faith, includes all that is meant by belief, 
and more, too. It means that we believe in God 
and in all that He has said in the Bible. It 
means that we believe that Christ is 
the Son of God manifest in the flesh, 
that He died for our sins, and is able 
to save all who trust in Him. It also 
means that we accept Him as our Savior, and 
lovingly depend upon Him for life and salva¬ 
tion. This dependence, or trust, in Him is full 
and unyielding, looking to Him and the merit 
of His atoning blood for forgiveness and sal¬ 
vation. When we willingly give up all that is 
wrong and trust Christ as our Savior we are 
justified and saved by Him. We are not able 
to fully keep God’s holy law ; but He permits 
us to trust in Christ and depend upon His obe¬ 
dience for us; and He accepts us in Christ and 
treats us as if His were our own personal right¬ 
eousness. We come to God feeling that we are 
totally helpless and unable to meet any of His 
holy demands; and we fully realize the words 
of the song: 

“Other refuge have I none, 

Hangs my helpless soul on Thee,” 


54 


The 'New Life in Christ . 


We fled to Him as our only refuge, the Rock 
of Ages, cleft for us, to hide ourselves iu Him. 
We feel that we can bring no atoning price; 
but clinging simply to Him crucified, depend 
upon Him alone to save. With joy we find 
that we are sheltered from wrath in Christ, 
are justified by faith, have peace with God, and 
are eternally saved. When a sinner believes 
in Christ and trusts Him as his Savior, then he 
is saved. “He that hath the Son hath life.” 

Will HarrisonT “What do those depend 
upon who look to works to save them? Do 
they think that any of their works are perfect 
enough to depend upon for life and salvation ?” 

It seem that they do, or they would not risk 
their all on them. Yet it is difficult to see how 
any new creature should do so. The Bible 
teaches plainly that our works cannot save us 
from condemnation; for they are not perfect, 
and they cannot atone for past sins, if they 
were perfect. They cannot take away the pen¬ 
alty of our sins, nor change our wicked fleshly 
natures, nor make us new creatures. But 
Christ has redeemed us with His precious 
atoning blood, and the believer is united to 
Him and made one with Him by faith, so that 
all the benefits of His obedience and sufferings 
are counted to the believer, and he is regarded 


Saved by Grace Through Faith. 55 

as though they all belonged to him in person. 
He is one with Christ by faith, and in Him he 
has eternal life. “Believe in the Lord Jesus 
Christ and thou shalt be saved.” “Whosoever 
believeth in Him shall not perish, but have eter¬ 
nal life/ 

Neil Johnson : “It ought to be easy for us 
to decide our true spiritual condition, whether 
we are saved or lost, because the lost work to 
save themselves, while the saved work from love 
to Christ because they are saved.” 

“By grace are ye saved through faith;” but 
“by the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justi¬ 
fied in His sight.” The saved work from love 
to Christ, love to others, and love for the things 
of God; while the unsaved work only because 
they look for salvation as the result of their 
works. They reject Christ as a complete and 
perfect Savior, and put their unloving, selfish 
works in His place, and depend upon them as 
the false ground of salvation. 

Miss Mary Long. “I noticed that you say 
the believer is saved, and has eternal life when 
he believes in Christ. I have been led to be¬ 
lieve that we are not sure of salvation till we 
reach heaven.” 


56 


The New Life in Christ. 


The text says: “Ye are saved/’ and not that 
ve shall be saved. Saved as soon as ye believe 
by grace through faith. It is true that many 
think that reaching heaven is being saved; but 
the Bible says believers are saved and have 
eternal life and are kept by the power of God. 

Mack Norman: “The experiences of believ¬ 
ers teach the same thing; they have the for¬ 
giveness of sins, peace with God and the hope 
of heaven. They trust Christ as their Savior, 
are new creatures and live new lives. They 
have passed out of darkness into light, and as 
living stones are built up in a living temple 
of the Lord.” 

Yes, the experiences of believers all indicate 
that they are in a saved state. By faith in 
Christ we have forgiveness of sins and are just¬ 
ified. “Through this man is preached unto you 
the forgiveness of sins; and by him all that be¬ 
lieve are justified from all things.’” “In whom 
we have redemption through His blood, the 
forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of 
His grace.” Forgiveness of sins is a present 
blessing, and is the result of belief in Christ. 
The believer is also justified by faith, and en¬ 
joys a present peace with God. As our sins 
were laid on Christ, and He bear all their pen¬ 
alty, and made satisfaction for them, so by 


Saved by Grace Through Faith. 57 

faith in Him the believer has all the benefits 
of His obedience and sufferings and death; and 
through His perfect righteousness is justified 
and saved. Wherefore being pardoned, just¬ 
ified and having peace with God, he is now 
saved by grace. These are present experiences, 
and indicate a present saved state. 

Miss Mary Long: “If the believer is par¬ 
doned, justified and saved by grace through 
faith in Christ, why is he taught to pray, "for¬ 
give us our sins’? ‘For if you forgive men their 
trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also for¬ 
give you: but if you forgive not men their 
trespasses, neither will your Father forgive 
your trespasses.’ How can the believer be par¬ 
doned, justified and saved and yet unforgiven?” 

When you owe a debt to the bank and cannot 
possibly pay it, and your security pays it for 
you, you are entirely free from the bank, and 
owe the bank nothing at all; but you do owe 
your security all that debt, and are under obli¬ 
gations to pay him in any way he may justly 
demand. Now Christ paid all our debt and 
set us free from the condemnation of sin and 
death. “Ye are not under the law, but under 
grace.” “For Christ is the end of the law for 
righteousness to every one that believeth;” and 
“There is therefore now no condemnation to 


58 


The New Life in Christ. 


them which are in Christ Jesus.” We do owe 
our lives and all we are and can do to Christ. 
He demands that we obey Him and keep His 
commands. If we fail to obey Him, we need 
forgiveness; for we are “under law to Christ.” 
The conditions of this forgiveness are at least 
in part that we confess our sins, and that 
we forgive others. If we fail to meet these con¬ 
ditions, then we leave ourselves subject to the 
chastenings of the Lord till we repent. These 
are our personal offenses to Christ who has 
redeemed us from under the curse of the law. 
He says: “If a man love me, he will keep my 
wordsand “He that hath my commandments 
and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me.” 
Love is the constraining power which moves the 
saved to obey Christ. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “The love of many 
must grow very cold, for they fail to obey and 
work for Christ.” 

Yes, and their peace and joy grow very weak, 
and they find themselves in deep darkness as 
to their personal interest in Christ. But “he 
that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and 
I will love him, and will manifest myself unto 
him,” “and we will come unto him and make 
our abode with him.” 


LESSON V. 


OBEDIENCE OF LOVE. 

F a man love me, he will keep my words.” 
“If ye love me, keep my command¬ 
ments.’’—John 14:23 and 15. 

The attendance was larger than usual, and 
the interest was also increasing. The one de¬ 
mand was for a clear and unmistakable evi¬ 
dence of the new birth. If love to Christ is evi¬ 
dence of a changed heart, what is evidence of 
real, genuine love to Christ? 

Miss Hattie Warner said, that she loved 
the Lord Jesus, but her life had not proved it; 
and she had not realized much of the joys of 
salvation for some time. If the Bible gives 
any infallible tests of a new heart and a new 
life she would be happy to know them; for 
she wanted her doubts and darkness done away 
with, that she might live close to her Savior. 

# 

The Bible test of the new birth is love to 
Christ, and the test of love to Christ is obedi- 

69 



GO 


The New Life in Christ. 


ence. This test is unmistakable and practi¬ 
cal, and each one may easily apply it to him¬ 
self. Do I keep the Lord’s holy words in mind, 
study to know what He says, and earnestly and 
lovingly try to do all He commands? Am I 
moved by love to know and do His will? This 
obedience of love is evidence of love to Christ. 

Miss Hattie replied, that she had not been 
keeping the Lord’s commands, but had been liv¬ 
ing a worldly, disobedient life, and had not 
even studied the Bible to see what Jesus says 
do. Her eyes were moist as she closed by say¬ 
ing that she feared she had never been saved. 

Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God? 
that he came in the flesh and died for our sins? 
and do you believe that He is able to save all 
who trust in Him ? Do you feel yourself to be 
a poor, lost sinner; and do you trust Him and 
His atoning death for pardon and salvation? 
Then, you are saved. The moment a sinner be¬ 
lieves in Christ, and trusts in His merit, and 
the merit of His atoning death, he is saved. 
“He that hath the Son hath life,” and “whoso¬ 
ever believes in Him shall not perish, but have 
eternal life.” Faith unites the believer to 
Christ and brings to him the benefits and re¬ 
sults of Christ’s perfect righteousness, and also 


Obedience of Love. 


61 


of His atoning death ; and he is fully justified 
and saved as soon ,as he accepts Christ and is 
accepted in Him. Faith in Christ, with what 
it includes, is the only condition of salvation, 
and the one essential; while obedience to all 
that Christ commands is essential to true 
Christian obedience, and to the proper manifes¬ 
tation and proof of love to Him as well as the 
manifestation of the new life to the world. 
Faith always includes love to Christ, and they 
cannot either exist without the new birth, as 
they are the result of it; and they are the un¬ 
mistakable proof of the new life. Obedience 
is the result of love which comes from the new 
life. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I do not wish to 
take up too much of the time, but I feel that 
I do believe in Christ and trust Him as my 
Savior, and I feel that I do love Him; yet I 
have not kept His commands, nor even stud¬ 
ied much to know and do His words, and I am 
troubled over it.” 

You did not feel much love to Christ dur¬ 
ing those days of disobedience, nor did your 
life prove to others that you were a new crea¬ 
ture. Nor had you much evidence that you 
were in a saved state’ and the joys of salvation 
needed to be restored to you. Those who do 


62 The New Life in Christ. 

the Father’s will are new creatures and shall 
be saved, and their obedience is evidence that 
they are Christians; for “we are His workman¬ 
ship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works.” 

Burt Norman : “Is it not a common mis¬ 
take for young Christians to expect to find per¬ 
fect obedience as the evidence of a saved state? 
I once was sorely troubled because I felt my 
love was not what it ought to be. My faith 
was so weak that I thought it was no faith at 
all; and my obedience is so imperfect that I 
hardly feel that it is obedience in any sense.” 

Miss Hattie said: “That is how I feel when 
I apply Bible tests to my life. My love and 
obedience to Christ are so far below what I 
feel they ought to be that I fear I am not 
saved.” 

Good works from love to Christ are the 
sure results and the unfailing evidence of sal¬ 
vation by grace through faith in Christ. If 
one is all the time living a pure, true, Godly, 
Christian life, and is lovingly doing the things 
which only the saved can do, it is unmistaka¬ 
ble proof that he is saved. While the fact that 
one does none of the things which all Chris¬ 
tians do, but is all the time living in sin, break¬ 
ing God’s holy laws, and manifesting the feel- 


Obedience of Love. 


63 


ings, acts and life of the unsaved, makes it hard 
to believe such an one is saved. The new na¬ 
ture produces new living, and manifests new 
feelings and principles; while the old life pro¬ 
duces old acts, feelings and living. “Men do 
not gather grapes of thorns, nor figs of this¬ 
tles;” no more do they gather loving obedience 
to the commands of Christ from an unrenewed 
life, nor a worldly, ungodly life from the new 
nature. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “What are the good 
works of the saved? Such as prove one to be 
a new creature?” 

“They who are Christ’s have crucified the 
flesh with the affections and lusts.” They are 
to deny themselves all ungodliness and worldly 
lust, and to live soberly and righteously in 
the world. They are to take up their crosses 
and follow Jesus. They are to preach, the gos¬ 
pel in their daily lives, by their influence and 
example. Those who know them best ought 
to feel the power of their Christian lives to 
lift them up to a better life, and all whom they 
touch ought to feel an uplift towards purity 
and God. They are to visit the sick, feed the 
hungry, clothe the naked, comfort the sorrow¬ 
ing, warn the Wayward, preach the gospel to 
the lost, and advance the kingdom of Christ. 
For them to live should be Christ. Their lives 


64 The New Life in Christ . 

ought to be found on the side of Christ, and 
they ought to do all things which He has com¬ 
manded. Those who obey the Lord from love 
have a most gracious reward of blessing here, 
and a most glorious one in the life to come. If 
Christians would only love their Lord more, 
and obey Him more faithfully, they would 
have far more joy and would be far more use¬ 
ful. 

Neil Johnson: “While we are on the test 
of love to Christ, tell us what real true Chris¬ 
tian love is. We want to know the difference 
between mere sentiment and true love to 
Christ.” 

The Bible tells us: “If I speak with the 
tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, 
I am become a sounding brass, or a clanging 
cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy, 
and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and 
if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains; 
but have not love, I am become nothing. And 
if I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and if 
I give my body to be burned, but have not love, 
it profiteth me nothing. Love suffereth long, 
and is kind; love envietk not; love vaunteth 
not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave 
itself unseemly, seeketh not its own, is not 
provoked, taketh not account of evil; rejoicetfc 


Obedience of Love. 


65 


not in unrighteousness, but rejoiceth in the 
truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, 
hopeth all things, endureth all things. Love 
never fails/’—1 Cor. 13:1-8 (Revised Version). 

From this description we see that the bright¬ 
est gifts, the strongest faith, the greatest char¬ 
ity and the heaviest sacrifices without love 
profit nothing. There must be love in all serv¬ 
ice to impart to it true value. Words are 
empty sounds unless vitalized by love; and all 
acts of Christianity, whether towards God or 
men, are vain and profitless unless prompted 
by love. God will have the heart or nothing, 
and men feel contempt for heartlessness 
wherever seen, and especially in professed 
Christians. 

Mack Norman : “Tell us how we can obtain 
and increase this pure unselfish Christian love, 
which seeks not its own, is kind, endures and 
bears all things and never fails.” 

Love is of God, and he that loveth is born of 
God; because God is love. It is the new nature, 
the divine life in us, that gives us the love 
which suffers long and is kind, is not moved 
nor controlled by selfishness, and does not seek 
to please or benefit itself, but seeks to please 
and benefit the one loved. It is the love of 
God shed abroad in our hearts, the divine na- 

5 


66 


The New Life in Christ. 


ture imparted to the new creature by the Holy 
Spirit, which makes him able to bear, believe, 
hope and endure all things for the one beloved; 
and it is this love only which never fails. It 
is fully seen in the acts and life of our dear 
Lord, who loved us and gave Himself for us, 
and when He was rich, for our sakes He be¬ 
came poor, that we through His poverty might 
be rich. It is seen in the Father’s love when He 
gave His Son to die for our sins, and it also 
leads him now in Christ to freely give us all 
things. This love shed abroad in our hearts by ' 
the Holy Spirit leads us to give ourselves to 
Him, so that “Whether ye eat or drink, or 
whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God;” 
also- that “they which live should not hence¬ 
forth live unto themselves, but unto Him who 
died for them, and rose again.” 

Leb Wallace: “I feel that I do love Jesus, 
and 1 gave myself to Him to be His, and live for 
His glory; and have not felt that I was willing 
to give up His service yet But I want to love 
Him more and serve Him better as long as I 
live. I feel that my love grows stronger for 
Him as I learn more of His love and grace to 
me. I find myself saying over and over, “Here, 
Lord, I give myself to thee.” 


Obedience of Love. 


67 


Miss Hattie repeated: 

“I am thine, O Lord, I have heard thy voice, 

And it told thy love to me; 

But I long to rise in the arms of faith, 

And be closer drawn to thee.” 

“I feel that I do love Jesus as my Savior, and 
I do want to be drawn closer to Him in love 
and in service. I cannot explain how it is pos¬ 
sible that I could love Him and yet live such a 
worldly, disobedient life; I want to know Him 
better, and know and do His will. I purpose by 
His help to try to know all things what the 
Lord says, and try to do all He commands. I 
want to walk in this better way of love.” 

“Behold I show untQ you a more excellent 
way,” and this way of love is open alike to all 
Christians. Some may have brighter gifts and 
greater .possibilities for service than others, but 
none are so poor or so weak that they may not 
possess and use this greatest of all gifts. All 
new creatures love God and the brethren as the 
result of the new birth; and by this love they 
know that they are born of God. By yielding 
ourselves up to the leading and control of the 
Holy Spirit, and by constant study to know 
the will of the Lord in the Bible, and by love- 
ing obedience to all He says, we may live this 


68 


The New Life in Christ . 


life of love, which is the new life, the life of the 
saved. This life of love is the one great differ¬ 
ence between the lives of the saved and the un¬ 
saved. The world is full of selfishness, self-love 
and self-seeking; but Christianity introduces 
unselfish love and self-sacrifice for the good of 
others, and this principle becomes a distinguish 
ing difference between the two lives. It is the 
natural outcome of the new life, while selfish¬ 
ness distinguishes the old. Let us examine our 
lives and see which principle controls them, 
love or selfishness? Let us, if new creatures, 
follow this more excellent way of love. 

Will Harrison: -"It seems to me that the 
knowledge of the fact that we are saved by 
grace through faith and not by works ought to 
fill us with love to Christ and move us to try 
to please Him in all things. I find that noth¬ 
ing makes me happier than to obey His words 
and to feel that I am pleasing Him. I find my¬ 
self settling everything by the w T ord of God. It 
has been my firm purpose ever since I joined 
the church to study the Bible in order to know 
the Lord’s will, and then try to do it. I believe 
that I am saved by grace through faith in 
Christ, and I am not working to save myself, 
but to please the Lord and help to save others.” 

The believer is saved by grace as soon as he 
trusts in Christ, and He says: "If ye love me, 


Obedience of Love. 


GO 


keep my commandments/’ and “If a man love 
me he will keep my words,” and “The luve of 
Christ constrains ns.” 

Miss Mary Long: “I have often heard it 
said that we are working to get to heaven, and 
that it takes hard work, too, to keep from be-* 
ing lost. I have never been able to separate 
all of my works from my hope of salvation.” 

The Bible teaches that we are saved by grace 
through faith, and being saved we work from 
love. The unsaved work for salvation, and the 
saved work because they are saved. Good 
works are the results of salvation, and in no 
sense the cause of it. The saved feel that it 
is necessary to do all that Jesus says do, not 
as essential to salvation, but as essential to full 
loving obedience; while the unsaved select some 
things which they think essential to salvation, 
and are very careful to do them, but pay very 
little attention to what they think non-essen¬ 
tial to salvation. 

Albert Edwards: “I feel the force of what 
you say about being saved by grace, but I have 
thought it a dangerous belief. For if we are 
saved alone by grace, and our works have noth¬ 
ing to do with our salvation, and we are safe 
from all condemnation, then what motive is 


70 


The new Life in Christ . 


there to keep us from sin or to lead us to obey 
Christ?” 


There is in the saved the strongest motive 
in human lives. “The love of Christ constrain- 
eth us;” we love Him because He died for our 
’ sins and saved us, and now we feel that it is 
a joy to live for Him 

Jim Lyle said, that he was offended at my 
teaching, that good works are only the results 
of salvation, and the evidence of a saved state, 
and are in no sense the ground of salvation. 
This doctrine, he thought, takes away all mo¬ 
tive to good works, and leaves the deceived one 
living in sin, with nothing to hold him back. 
He considered such teaching dangerous and 
hurtful to all who come under its influence. 

I told him that love to Christ is the strongest 
motive in the world, and the believer is a new 
creature, and is already sick of sin, and would 
be glad to give it up if there was no heaven 
or hell. But he being unsaved and having no 
love for Christ, was not able to understand that 
love to Christ could move to obedience. His 
only hope of heaven was his own poor works, 
and all he ever told us he had done, was that he 
gave up some of his grosser sins, joined “the 
church of his choice,” submited to the “non' 


Obedience of Love. 


71 


essential act of baptism according to his prefer¬ 
ence.” Upon this he was depending as the 
means of his salvation, and was angry with 
me and left the class because I told him the 
truth, that there is no salvation outside of 
grace through faith in Christ, and that all good 
works avail nothing without faith in Christ, 
and then they are the works of the saved and 
not to save. 

Neil Johnson: “If it were possible for a 
sinner to go to heaven upon his own works, how 
would he feel there?” 

If it were possible for a sinner to work his 
way to heaven and get there without a new 
heart and faith in Christ, he would feel no 
obligation to Christ, and would have no heart 
for heavenly things. He would be independent 
of Christ, and could praise and glorify himself 
and his own works, He would have room to 
boast before God and the angels that he had 
made himself worthy and worked his way to 
heaven. But the sinner out of Christ has no 
merit to present to God to satisfy the demands 
of justice and atone for the many violations of 
His holy law. How little do such persons 
know of the guilt of sin, the condemnation of 
the law and of the infinite holiness and justice 
of God! How little they know of the exceed- 


72 


The New Life in Christ . 


ing sinfulness of sin, the depravity of human 
nature, and of the supreme purity of heaven 
and the holiness of God! 

My friend thinks to reach heaven apart from 
grace and out of Christ; and does not know that 
he could never sing the songs of the redeemed. 
He does not sing from the heart now the 
songs of salvation by grace. 

This is the Scriptural test, are you depend¬ 
ing upon grace through faith in Christ for 
salvation, or trying to work your way to 
heaven, or working from love to Christ as your 
Savior? 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I have known the 
joys of salvation and am trusting in Christ 
and Him crucified for life and salvation, and I 
do love the songs of redeeming grace; but I 
greatly desire the joys of salvation restored. 
I am determined to give up all that will be dis¬ 
pleasing to Christ to study the Bible to know 
and do all that the Lord says do, and I want 
to walk in the light of God’s countenance, 
have fellowship with Him, and have assurance 
that the blood of Christ cleanses me from all 
sin.” 

Many of the class signified their purpose to 
give up all disobedience and turn back to the 
commands of Christ. We all joined with 


Obedience of Love . 


73 


Miss Hattie in singing, “O, for a closer walk 
with God!” and all seemed to enter heartily 
in the verse— 

“The dearest idol I have known, 

What e’er that idol be, 

Help me to tear it from thy throne, 

And worship only thee.” 

All seemed determined to walk closer with God, 
and to know and do what the Lord says do. 


LESSON VI. 


KEPT OF GOD. 


w 


HO are kept by the power of God through 
faith unto salvation.”—1 Peter 1:5. 

When the class assembled to-day and 
the Scripture texts had been read, Miss 
Hattie said, more to herself than to the class, 
“I am so glad that God is my keeper, and not 
myself. I have tried and failed; I want him to 
keep me. I am so glad we are to study about 
His keeping power to-day.” 


Lee Wallace: “Do'all Christians feel their 
need of divine keeping? I am so weak that I 
am compelled to lean upon Christ and seek 
His help all the time.” 


Jesus says: “Without me ye can do nothing.” 
All Christians realize their own weakness, and 
inability to keep themselves in a saved state, 
even after they have been pardoned, justified 
and have peace with God through faith in 
Christ. They find themselves unable to live 
up to their best resolutions, and they fall far 
74 



Kept of God . 


75 


short of their highest aims and purposes to do 
their duty and glorify God. They fail to do a 
great deal they could have done; and if their 
salvation depended upon their obedience, or 
the purity of their lives, they would soon be 
hopelessly under condemnation and the wrath 
of God. They are not able to keep themselves, 
and there is enough that is wrong in the lives 
of the best men to bring them into ruin at 
all times, if left to themselves. 

Miss Mary Long: “How then can any be 
saved , if they are not sinless? Can any one 
who is sinful go to heaven? All who enter 
through the gates into that pure and holy 
place must be sinless.” 

Yes; but the Christian is saved by grace 
through faith in Christ, and is kept by the 
power of God through faith unto salvation. 
He has been redeemed by the precious atoning 
blood of Jesus Christ, born of the Spirit, par¬ 
doned and justified by God through faith in 
Christ, and is kept by the power of God through 
faith in Christ. He lives now by the divine 
strength, even as he is saved through the right¬ 
eousness of Christ; and he enters heaven in the 
merit of the perfect righteousness of Christ, 
which is imputed to all who believe in Him. 
Paul wanted to be found at last not having 


76 


The New Life in Christ. 


his own righteousness, which was by the law; 
but the righteousness of God, which is obtained 
by faith in Christ. 

Albert Edwards: “You notice that this 
keeping of believers by the power of God is al¬ 
together dependent upon faith. If it is through 
faith, may not the faith fail, and then God’s 
keeping power fail?” 

You forget that the believer is saved as soon 
as he believes in Christ. All who believe in 
Him are justified, have eternal life, shall not 
perish, and are kept by the power of God. 
“Salvation is of the Lord,” and He is “mighty 
to save,” both in the beginning and finishing 
the work of salvation. Faith unites the believ¬ 
er to Christ, and through faith flows all the 
divine grace and strength from Christ which 
is needed by the weakest Christian. As the 
branch receives all it needs of life’s supplies 
from the vine; so believers live in Christ and 
draw from Him through faith all that is need¬ 
ful for life and salvation, to enable them to 
live and bear fruit and glorify God. God is as 
able to keep the believer unto salvation as He 
was to redeem him; and He has made His ar¬ 
rangements as complete for keeping as He did 
for redeeming him. 


Kept of God . 


77 


Miss Mary Long : “It may be my fault, but 
I did not understand your explanation why, 
if the keeping power of God is received by the 
believer through faith, his faith may not fail, 
and he fail to be kept of God unto salvation. 
I have been led to believe that our salvation 
depends a great deal upon ourselves.” 

When the believer accepts Christ as his Sa¬ 
vior, and is accepted in Christ by the Father, 
he is accepted for time and for eternity. 
Christ answers for all his sins, and the right¬ 
eousness of Christ answers for his entire life 
and being. He is dead with Christ to that 
life wherein he was subject to condemnation; 
and is alive in Christ to that life in which 
there is no condemnation. “Believing, ye re¬ 
joice with joy unspeakable and full of glory; 
receiving the end of your faith, even the sal¬ 
vation of your souls.” Christ has obtained 
eternal redemption for all who trust in Him; 
and He is fully able to keep all whom the 
Father hath given Him, and none is able to 
pluck them out of His hand. “It is God that 
justifies, who is he that shall condemn? It 
is Christ Jesus that died, yea rather, that was 
raised from the dead, who is at the right hand 
of God, who also makes intercession for us. 
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” 
“What shall we say to these things? If God be 


78 


The Neiv Life in Christ . 


for us, who can be against ns? He that spared 
not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us 
all, how shall He not with Him also freely give 
us all things? Who shall lay anything to the 
charge of God’s elect?” 

Miss Mary Long: “It seems to me if the 
believer is saved when he trusts in Christ, then 
there would be no necessity for him to trouble 
about his salvation. He might do as he pleases, 
and it would have nothing to do with his sal¬ 
vation. But I am sure that there is no chance 
for salvation to any who do not live right; and 
in my opinion it is impossible to tell who will 
be saved until the time of death, and you have 
all the life to judge from. I am trying to live 
right so that I may be saved; if it is true that 
we must be saved before we can live right, then 
I would like to know it. It would be a great 
joy for me to know that I am saved by faith in 
Christ independent of my life and works; for 
I come far short of what I want to do and be. 
Is it really true that all who believe in Christ 
are saved and shall not perish?” 

All tv ho believe in Christ are justified, and 
there is therefore now no condemnation to 
them who are in Christ. He satisfied divine 
justice by dying for their sins, and rose from 
the dead, and returned to the right hand of 


Kept of God. 


79 


the Father to intercede for them. The supreme 
Judge has justified them through the righteous¬ 
ness of Christ. He suffered their penalty and 
paid their debt, and they go free and are just¬ 
ified by God through faith in Christ; and there 
is no condemnation to them who are in Christ. 
He answers for them in full, and is their life, 
is keeping them, has given unto them eternal 
life, and declares that they shall never perish. 

Do you depend upon Christ for life and 
salvation? Then trust Him to save you, and 
depend upon Him and His atoning blood wholly 
for salvation. Then trust Him to keep you; 
for “He is able to save to the uttermost all 
that come unto God by Him.” “He is able to 
keep you from falling, and to present you fault¬ 
less before the presence of His glory with ex¬ 
ceeding joy.” 

Neil Johnson: “I am sure I would far 
rather trust the Lord to keep me, than to trust 
to my own keeping power. I have learned that 
without Christ I can do nothing; and I am 
truly glad that my salvation is not dependent 
upon myself at any point or in anything. I 
trust Christ as my Savior, and it is a deep joy 
to me to realize that he saves me completely, 
and is keeping me by His own power unto 
life eternal. I would be afraid tp undertake to 
keep myself saved for one single moment in one 


80 


Che New Life in Christ. 


single thing; but I am not afraid to trust 
Christ; “for I know whom I have believed, and 
I am persuaded that He is able to keep that 
which I have committed unto Him against that 
day.” 

We are told of the keeping power of God, 
“Who hath saved us, and called us with a holy 
calling, not according to our works, but accord¬ 
ing to His own purpose and grace,which was 
given us in Christ before the world began.” 
Jesus also said: “Holy Father, keep through 
thine own name those whom thou hast given 
me, that they may be one, as we are. While I 
was with them in the world, I kept them in thy 
name; those that thou gavest me I kept, and 
none of them is lost.” “My sheep hear my voice, 
and I know them, and they follow me: and I 
give unto them eternal life, and they shall never 
perish, neither shall any man pluck them out 
of my hand. My Father which gave them me, 
is greater than all; and no man is able to 
pluck them out of my Father’s hand.” Here 
Jesus says that He gives unto His people eter¬ 
nal life, and that they shall never perish, and 
none are able to pluck them out of His and the 
Father’s hands. 

Will Harrison: “I notice that there is no 
mention made of faith here by Christ; but He 


Kept of God. 


81 


says, ‘I kept them in thy name/ and ‘keep them 
through thy name/ If He has given them eter¬ 
nal life, and they shall never perish, and none 
shall ever be able to pluck them out of His 
hand, them I am sure they must be kept in per¬ 
fect safety unto salvation. Faith is the gift 
of God, and Christ is the author, and finisher 
of faith; and the believer’s new nature and 
conscious need lead him to live looking to 
Jesus for life, salvation and keeping.” 

Faith is the belief that God is true, and 
His word and promises are equally true 
with Him, and it is also an unquali¬ 
fied trust and dependence upon Christ 
and His atoning merit for life and salvation. 
Faith is the hand that reaches out and lays 
hold upon Christ and receives of His fullness; 
it is the bond of union between us and Christ 
by which we are made one with Him and re¬ 
ceive of His fullness of grace, strength and 
salvation. All people have their beliefs, and 
they trust their eternal safety to their beliefs 
and to the objects or theories believed in. Two 
men were upset in a river just above a tre¬ 
mendous fall; and while they were clinging 
to some slender overhanging boughs from a 
steep cliff, their friends floated ropes out to 
them. One of the men laid hold upon the rope 
and trusted his safety to those on the shore 

Q 


82 . 


The New Life in Christ. 


and was saved, while the other in the excite¬ 
ment of his half-drowned condition laid hold 
upon a floating log, and trusted his safety to it, 
and while resting all of his weight upon the log 
was carried with it down the current into swift 
and certain death. So it is with those who trust 
their salvation to anything else than to Christ 
and Him crucified, while all who trust in Him 
are absolutely and forever safe. “We might have 
strong consolation, who have fled for refuge 
to lay hold upon the hope set before us: which 
hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both 
sure and steadfast, and which entereth into 
that within the veil.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I am so glad we 
can safely trust in Him who is mighty to save, 
and who saves them to the uttermost who come 
to God by Him. If His grace and power were 
not so great I would now be without God and 
without hope in the world. I went to the same 
extent of worldly and ungodly living as almost 
any of my unregenerate companions; and while 
I lost the joys and comforts of salvation, I 
never lost my trust in Christ and hope of 
heaven through His grace. I am trying now 
to do all He says do, and believe and trust all 
of His promises; and while I do not yet real¬ 
ize the fullness of His presence, nor have the 
fullness of the joys of His salvation; yet I am 


Kept of God . 


83 


trusting Christ and Him crucified. I believe 
that I am accepted in Christ, that He answers 
for all my sin, and that I am justified by His 
righteousness through faith in Him, and have 
peace with God and hope of heaven; but for 
some cause my soul is in darkness. Not in the 
darkness of those who know not God,but of one 
who has wandered far from duty, lived in dis¬ 
obedience and sin, grieved the Holy Spirit, and 
dishonored the Lord. I feel that I have grieved 
and dishonored my best friend and thrown 
away opportunities and possibilities of serv¬ 
ing God and being useful that I can never get 
back again. I do want to live for God and 
please Him from this time on through life. 
The cry of my soul is, ‘None of self, but all of 
thee.’ ” 

The Lord says, “In a little wrath I hid my 
face from thee for a moment; but with ever¬ 
lasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, 
saith the Lord thy Redeemer. For this is as 
the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have 
sworn that the waters of Noah should no more 
go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would 
not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee. For 
the mountains shall depart, and the hills be 
removed; but my kindness shall not depart 
from thee, neither shall the covenant of my 
peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath 


84 


The New Life in Christ . 


mercy on thee.” Let us stay our hearts upon 
the Lord and trust in Him, and obey the voice 
of His word; and He will soon make His pres¬ 
ence known, send forth the quickening of His 
Spirit, and restore the joys of His salvation. 

Let us confess and forsake all of our sins, 
and turn back in full obedience to all the 
commands of Christ, and He will give us to 
realize His presence, and will fill us with the 
iruits of the Holy Spirit. 

Miss Hattie sang— 

"How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, 
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word! 
What more can he say than to you he hath said, 
You who unto Jesus for refuge have fled?” 

“When thou passest through the waters I 
will be with thee; and through the rivers, they 
shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest 
through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; 
neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.” 
“Fear not; for I have redeemed thee, I have 
called thee by thy name; thou art mine.” 


LESSON VII. 


SAVED TO WORK. 

W r "™" E are His workmanship created in 
Christ Jesus unto good works, which 
God hath before ordained that we 
should walk in them.”—Eph. 2:10. 

Miss Mary Long: “I thought you did not 
believe in good works; but that we are saved 
by grace through faith without works, even 
being kept in a saved state by the power of 
God independent of our works.” 

The Bible teaches that we are saved by grace 
through faith, and not of works; and that we 
are justified by faith wholly through the merits 
of the atoning blood and righteousness of 
Christ, without any dependence upon our own 
works; but that does not set aside the fact that 
believers are to walk in good works. 

Miss Mary Long : “If salvation does not 
depend upon works in any sense, then what 

85 




86 


The New Life in Christ. 


motives have the saved to work? I have been 
led to believe that the fear of losing heaven 
is absolutely necessary to keep the Christian 
stirred up to do good works and to live right. 
This motive is entirely removed if your theory 
of salvation is true. It seems to me a danger¬ 
ous belief.” 

All Scripture is dangerous if it be wrested 
from its true meaning and be used in a false 
one. Those who think that all motive to obe¬ 
dience to Christ is removed when the sinner 
has been freely and fully saved by grace, fail 
to understand the true nature of the saved. 
God says: “I will put my laws into their 
minds, and write them in their hearts, and I 
will be to them a God, and they shall be to me 
a people.” Thej are “created in Christ Jesus 
unto good works.” They are prepared especial¬ 
ly to do good works; and God has filled theii* 
hearts with strong impelling love to Christ 
which moves them mightily to live and work 
for Him. 

It would be dangerous for the unrenewed 
man to believe that he is saved by grace and 
justified by the merits of Christ, as he would 
go deeper into sin; because he loves sin and 
hates God. But the new creature hates sin, 
and has been made so sick of it that he has had 
his fill of sin. He has been made alive spirit- 


Saved to Work. 


87 


ually and brought to see the exceeding sinful¬ 
ness of sin; and under a deep sense of guilt 
has tasted the wormwood and the gall of the 
bitterness of sin. He is dead to it, and how 
can he live any longer in it? 

Miss Mary Long : "If the new creature does 
hate sin, and is -willing to give it up, what mo¬ 
tive is there to make him strive to live right 
and do good? He is already saved, and God 
is keeping him in a saved state; what further 
is left to lead him to any better life, or to at¬ 
tempt any good works? It seems to me that 
your theory will paralyze all Ghristian enter¬ 
prise and effort/’ 

Think you that wfhen the Christian sees 
Christ suffering on the cross for his sins, and 
knows that it is all removed from him for¬ 
ever by the merit of His atoning blood, that 
his new heart will not go out in the deepest, 
purest love and gratitude to Christ, and that 
he will not be glad to do anything and every 
thing He has commanded? “The love of Christ 
constrains us” to gladly know and do all that 
He says do. The strongest motive known to 
man is left, and is in powerful action, moving 
him to live for Christ and to do all He com¬ 
mands. The motive of love to Christ leads the 
Christian to render acceptable service, while 


88 


The New Life in Christ. 


those who work from fear and selfishness ren¬ 
der service from low and unacceptable mo¬ 
tives. 

Burt Norman : “What is meant by created 
in Christ unto good works? It seems to me 
that the text means that the Christian has 
been made for that express purpose. As the 
reaper was made solely to gather grain, and 
the drill to plant it so I understand that the 
Christian was made solely to do good works.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I see that fact 
very plainly taught in the Bible; but what 
about the experiences so many professed Chris¬ 
tians, who walk in their same old worldly w r ays, 
and do the same works of their old worldly 
lives? I lived much of my past life in any¬ 
thing else than in the good works of the saved.” 

The Christian has been created to do good 
works, made for that express purpose. He has 
been specially prepared to do them; and God 
has ordained that he shall do good works. 
The Lord not only secured the salvation of 
those who are in Christ, but He has secured 
by foreordination that they shall walk in good 
works. He has made them new creatures, put 
in them the love of God, and love for His laws; 
and under the power of the Holy Spirit they 


Saved to Work. 


89 


are led to live new lives, and to do good works. 
God has put His laws in their minds and writ¬ 
ten them npon their hearts and He also 
dwells in their hearts by faith and works 
in them to will and to do of His good pleasure. 
In this way they are created in Christ to dc 
good works, both by their new nature and love 
for God and the things to be done, and also 
by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit 
dwelling in them. Paul realized that “Christ 
liveth in me, and .the life which I now live in 
the liesh I live by the faith of the Son of 
God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” 
“His grace which was bestowed upon me, was 
not in vain; but I labored more abundant than 
they all; yet not I, but the grace of God which 
was with me ” 

Mack Norman : “What does the Lord mean 
by good works? The common meaning now is 
going to meetings, collecting money, testifying 
and all kinds of entertainments and enterprises 
for helping on the finances of the church. How 
can we tell what the Lord means by good works 
and how He wants them done? I feel like the 
good Works of the saved means something 
more and even better than all this.” 

The good works of the saved consist in being 
and doing what the Lord says in the Bible. 


90 


The New Life in Christ. 


The first thing required to be done by all is to 
believe in Christ. “This is the work of God, that 
ye believe on Him whom He hath sent;” and 
trusting in Him as the Son of God and Divine 
Savior, believe and obey all He commands. The 
way to settle the character of works engaged 
in as Christian good works is to measure them 
by the Bible. Ask what Jesus says about them; 
not so much what Jesus would do, as what 
Jesus has done, and commands us to do. By 
faith and prayer we are to seek for the guid¬ 
ance of the Holy Spirit to help us understand 
what the Lord wants us to do as revealed in the 
Bible, and for grace and strength to enable 
us to live for God and obey all He has com¬ 
manded us to do. 

Lee Wallace: “What kind of works does 
God require of us to do? If He has created us 
in Christ to do good works, and ordained that 
we should walk in them, does He not deter¬ 
mine also what we are to do?” 

He has made very clear statements as to 
what He wants us to do. These works refer 
to ourselves in living pure and godly lives. 
Jesus says: “Deny thyself, take up thy cross, 
and follow me.” He requires that we put off 
the works of the flesh, and deny ourselves all 
ungodliness, worldliness and fleshly lusts, and 


Saved to Work. 


91 


live temperate, pure and true Christian lives. 
We are to live not after the flesh, but after 
the Spirit, and to live in love, joy, peace and 
all of the fruits of the Spirit. Being ’new 
creatures, He requires that we be renewed in 
the temper o f our minds and bring every 
thought, feeling, word and act of our lives into 
subjection to the word and will of God. We 
are to live new lives of loving obedience to 
Christ. 

These good works* refer also to others, as 
Christians are the light of the world and the 
salt of the earth. Their lives and influence 
and. efforts should be to lead others to Christ, 
and make their lives purer and better. The 
Lord has commanded in His word that we go 
into all ther world and preach the gospel to ev¬ 
ery creature; and that we lay by us in store 
on the first day of the week our money as the 
Lord has prospered us. So one great line of 
good works required by the Lord is preaching 
the gospel at home and over all the world. 

The other line of good works required refers 
to God, in His praise, worship and service. 
Our first and highest aim in life in all we do 
in word or deed should be to glorify God, and 
to please Him should be our main purpose of 
life. We should live to Him who died for us, 
whatever we do, whether we eat or drink, we 
should do it all to the glory of God. 


9 ? 


The New Life in Christ. 


Miss Hattie Warner: “If God has ordain¬ 
ed that new creatures should walk in good 
works, how is it that so many seem to be 
Christians and yet fail to walk in good works? 
Nothing ordained of God ever fails or comes 
short of being accomplished. I do not see how 
new creatures walk in their old lives.” 

All new creatures do walk in good works; 
with them old things have passed away, and 
all things have become new. They have been 
born again, quickened with Christ from their 
deadness in sin, and have been raised up with 
Christ to walk in newness of life. “Every tree 
is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men 
do not gather figs,nor of a bramble bush gather 
they grapes. A good man out of the good treas¬ 
ure of his heart bringeth forth that which is 
good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure 
of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil.” 
Love to God and faith in Christ do not pro¬ 
ceed from an unrenewed heart; but are the re¬ 
sults of the new birth. Love to Christians, 
and practical kindness shown them is from the 
new nature and not from the old. Even babes 
in Christ love Him, and love the brethren, 
and praise God and pray for others. There 
are many results seen in the weakest Christians 
which are not found in the hearts and lives of 
the unrenewed. The unrenewed never love 


Saved to Work . 


93 


Christ, nor try to please Him, nor really care 
to please His people; but these are the works 
natural to the saved. Sorrow for sin and turn¬ 
ing away from it to serve the living God, is 
fruit from the life of a new creature. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “But what about 
such worldly irreligious life as I have been 
living for some time? Such living does not 
come from the new birth; but it makes it very 
doubtful that there is any new creature con¬ 
nected with it.” 

You Will do well to remember that regener 
ation imparts a new nature which loves God 
and hates sin; but it does not remove the old 
nature. There is a conflict between the two 
natures in the life of every true Christian. 
The fleshly nature wars against the spiritual 
hature and they are contrary to each other. 
Now if this fleshly nature is not repressed and 
held in check, it will bear fruit in the life and 
it will not be true spiritual fruit; but it will 
be after the flesh. We are to crucify the body 
and keep it under, put off the deeds of the body, 
and deny ourselves, if we would live new lives, 
and glorify God. 

Miss Mary Long: “What becomes of those 
who do not deny themselves and follow Christ; 


94 


The New Life in Christ. 


but live after the flesh, and go back to their old 
worldly lives?’ 7 

If they are really Christians, and the good¬ 
ness and mercy of God does not lead them to 
repentance, then they will be chastened of the 
Lord and brought to repentance. The Lord 
hides His face, and leaves them in darkness 
till they are willing to return. Sometimes 
health, or property, or friends must be taken 
to cause them to return; but He knows how to 
bring the wandering sheep back to the fold, 
and the Christian back to faithful Christian 
work. 


LESSON VIII. 


GOOD WORKS REWARDED. 

0 THER foundation can no man lay than 
that which is laid, which is Jesus 
Christ. But if any man build on the 
foundation gold, silver, costly stones, 
wood, hay, stubble; each man’s work shall be 
made manifest: for the day shall declare it, 
because it is revealed in fire; and the fire it¬ 
self shall prove each man’s work of what sort 
it is. If any man’s work shall be burned, he 
shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved, 
yet so as through fire.”—1 Cor. 3:11-15 (R. V). 

The Bible teaches that the believer is saved 
by grace through faith, and that he is rewarded 
for all acts of obedience to the commands of 
the Lord. All things commanded by Christ 
done in love to Him shall be fully rewarded. 
Even a cup of cold water given in the name of 
a disciple shall in no case lose its reward; and 
in the last day the Lord will regard the things 
which have been done unto the least of His 

95 


96 


The New Life in Christ. 


brethren as done unto Himself, whether good 
or bad. 

Miss Mary Long: “You admit then that 
these rewards are a part of the salvation of the 
saved, and that they are of works?” 

Not at all. This reward of the saved for 
their good works is all of grace, yet according 
to their works; and the blessings which the 
saved enjoy as the result of their obedience to 
Christ. 

Mack Norman: “What is meant by build¬ 
ing out of gold, silver and costly stones?” 

Those who build of gold, silver and cosily 
stones, are they who believe and obey from the 
heart what the Bible teaches, and teach others 
to believe and obey it. The Bible will be as 
true at the last day as it is now; and all who 
believe, obey and teach it from love, will find 
that their work will stand the fiery test of the 
last judgment, and they will receive their re¬ 
ward. But those who put something else in 
place of the teachings of the Bible, and the 
commands of Christ, will find that their works 
will be of hay, wood and stubble, and will be 
burned up; and they who did the works will 
suffer loss. It does not matter how zealously 


. Good Works Rewarded . 


97 


they did the works, nor how honestly they be¬ 
lieved that wood and hay would do to build 
out of. 

The foundation laid is Christ and Him cru¬ 
cified, and all who believe in Him and trust 
the merits of His atoning blood, are saved. 
All who preach this blessed gospel to others 
are building upon the true foundation of gold, 
silver and costly stones; but those who preach 
differently from this are building materials 
on the foundation which the Bible does not fur¬ 
nish, and will suffer loss. The same will be true 
of all who respect any of the commands of 
Christ, and teach something else instead of 
the word of God. 

Miss Mary Long: “How is it that one can 
suffer loss of his works in the judgment and 
yet be saved ?” 

All who believe in Christ are saved by grace 
through faith; and if they believe and teach 
error, when the fire of the last day shall prove 
their work false, it will be burned and they 
will lose their reward for it. They are saved 
themselves; yet so as through fire: “As a man 
escapes through the flames of his burning 
house, and takes nothing with him.” The rea¬ 
son they are saved, while their works are burn- 

T 


98 


The New Life in Christ. 


ed, is because they are saved by grace and not 
by works. 

Miss Mary Long: “It truly does seem that 
way. I have heard all my life a great deal 
about works having much to do with our sal¬ 
vation, and it seems strange that anyone could 
be saved while he suffers the loss of all his 
works.” 

They worked, but lost their rewards, because 
their works \yere not Scriptural. To do things 
contrary to the word of God, or put the do¬ 
ing ot something else in the place of what the 
Lord commands, is to insure the loss of re¬ 
ward. We will none of us receive a reward 
for work which we have not done; and the 
Lord will not reward us for doing work com¬ 
manded by someone else instead of that com¬ 
manded by Him. He rewards all who obey His 
commands, and build as He has said, and use 
the materials given by Himself in His word. 

Neil Johnson : “I grow weary and impa¬ 
tient wihen I hear a professed Christian speak 
of any of Christ’s commands as non-essential. 
I do not believe that He ever commanded any¬ 
thing that we should feel it unimportant to 

do. ” 


Good Works Rewarded . 


99 


Those who speak in this way have the idea 
that their essential things must be done to be 
saved, and when saved, they seem never to 
think nor care for suck things as are essen¬ 
tial to reward. 

Lee Wallace : “The one question with me 
is not, if something else will do as well as what 
Christ says do; but am I doing what the Lord 
commands? Will this work stand, or be 
burned?” 

Nothing but the Bible will abide the test of 
fire at the last day, and it is w^orse than vain 
for us to put anything else in its place. But 
if we do not care for our works to abide, nor 
for the eternal and glorious reward of true, 
honest work, we ought surely to be ashamed to 
build upon Christ out of unsound doctrine, or 
unscriptural teachings. How our Lord must 
disapprove of our building upon Him out of 
hay, wood and stubble! We should never ask 
if our teaching will do as well as something 
else, but if it is the truth of God, taught in 
the Bible? If it is, it will remain when all the 
contrary doctrines and practices of men have 
been consumed into ashes and smoke, and are 
heard of no more forever. 

God says it is vain to teach the command¬ 
ments of men for the doctrine of God; and the 


LofC. 


100 


The New Life in Christ. 


vanity of the thing is seen in the fact, that all 
such work will be burned up at last, and all 
who spend their lives in such work will suffer 
the loss of reward for all of their work. 

Miss Mary Long: “It is of very great im¬ 
portance that we study the Bible in order to 
know that our belief and practice are right, and 
will stand the test of the fire at last.” 

We are to test every belief by the Bible now; 
for it will be the test in that day, and we sure¬ 
ly ought to study to know it. The Lord says: 
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in 
all wisdomand, “If ye abide in me, and my 
words abide in you, ye shall ask what you 
will, and it shall be done unto you.” There 
are many rewards in this present life for 
works done in obedience to the commands of 
Christ, as well as those to be enjoyed in the 
last day. 

Mack Norman : “ We shall ask what ye will, 
and it shall be done unto you;* does this in¬ 
clude the working of miracles? I heard a 
seemingly good man say that Christians could 
work miracles to-day as well as they did in 
the beginning of Christianity.” 

It is generally thought that the days of mir¬ 
acles are really passed; if for no other reason, 


Good Works Rewarded. 


101 


because there are no real miracles being per¬ 
formed now, as there were in the days of the 
apostles. When they perform one that mani¬ 
fests the actual creative power of God, as mak¬ 
ing the withered hand whole, or the shrunken, 
small limbs of a life-long cripple full and 
strong, simply by the word of command in 
the name of Christ, then we will all be glad to 
believe and know, that the days of Christian 
miracles are not passed. But there are great 
and precious privileges given us in the prom¬ 
ise : “Ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be 
done unto you” 

Will Harrison: “All true Christians feel 
the need of prayer, and many times in their 
lives they feel that all their help is from God; 
and to have Him hear and answer their prayers 
is the greatest of mercies. It is a matter of 
much importance to know and meet the con¬ 
ditions upon which God gives such great priv¬ 
ileges.” 

“If ye abide in me and my words abide in 
you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be 
done unto you.” To know that His ears are 
open to our cry, is a privilege and blessing far 
beyond all earthly good. This privilege is de¬ 
pendent upon two conditions: “If ye abide in 
me, and my words abide in you.” 


102 


The New Life in Christ. 


To abide in Christ is to trust in Him, and to 
depend upon His atoning sacrifice for sin, and 
to draw from Him by faith and prayer, all the 
grace and help we need. We are to continue a 
conscious union and communion with Him, 
looking to Him and depending upon Him, live 
by faith in Him, from His life, worthiness, 
grace, power; and obtain all we need from His 
fullness. “The just shall live by faith;” and 
“The life which I now live in the flesh, I live by 
the faith of the Son of Cod, who loved me and 
gave Himself for me.” By this divine energy 
we are enabled to live and work, because 
Christ lives in us. 

Neil Johnson: “‘If my words abide in 
you/ many professed Christians know little 
about God’s words, and His words can not 
abide in them; because they have never known 
what He has said. They rarely ever read the 
Bible and are almost total strangers to its 
contents. It must mean to study to know the 
words of Christ as well as do them.” 

“If any man have my commandments and 
keepeth them,” means if ye remember, keep in 
mind, and obey my words. We are to study to 
know and do all that He says; and not simply 
someone’s opinion of what He says. Not some¬ 
thing we think will do just as well as His 
words. 


Good Works Rewarded . 


103 


We need to be exceedingly careful with, the 
Bible, the word of God; because so much de¬ 
pends upon knowing and obeying it. It is a 
matter of wonder how Christians can neglect 
the Bible so much, and know so little about 
what it says, and do so little of what it re¬ 
quires. No wonder so many of our prayers 
are barren of answers, and so many lives have 
so little spiritual power; because we have so 
little of the word of God in us. 

Lee Wallace: “The word of God in our 
minds, hearts and lives is a wonderful power 
for good.” 

By the word of God we are enlightened, made 
wise unto salvation, and led in the ways of 
life, obedience and blessing. The preaching of 
the gospel is made of God, the means used by 
His power to save all tvho believe; as faith 
comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of 
God. The word of God is the instrument used 
by the Holy Spirit in the awakening and sav¬ 
ing sinners, and it is the means used in the 
sanctifying of believers. “Sanctify them by 
Thy truth; Thy word is truth.” The Bible be¬ 
lieved and obeyed will not only lead to salva¬ 
tion through faith in Christ, but to a pure, and 
true life. 


104 


The New Life in Christ. 


Lee Wallace: “It leads us to know the 
truth, and the truth will make us free.” 

It frees us from condemnation and wrath 
through faith in Christ, and from the rule of 
sin and error. “Whereby shall a young man 
cleanse his way? By taking heed to it accord¬ 
ing to Thy word / 7 Many young men, even 
Christians, with little knowledge of the Bible, 
are like a ship at sea without chart and com¬ 
pass. They have no means of telling just 
where they are, nor what dangers lie hidden 
m their way. There are many hidden rocks, 
reefs and quick sands between them and the 
other shore, and they have no means by which 
to tell where they are drifting. Thousands of 
young lives have been shipwrecked and have 
gone down on the shores of time from the fear¬ 
ful sins and evil practices which are plainly 
pointed out in the Bible. 

If any young person will study the Bible, 
and govern his life by its teachings, he will 
find the way to his desired final haven of 
rest, and avoid the dangers along the way. 
Believe what the Bible says, study to know it 
fully, and do all it commands. Put the Bible 
into actual life, and it will cleanse, direct and 
purify the life. 

Neil Johnson: “‘If my words abide in 
you/ If ye know and obey His words, and 


Good Works Rewarded . 


105 


abide in Christ, you will live a blessed and 
happy life: ‘Ye may ask what ye will, and it 
shall be done nnto you.’ ” 

Your heart and mind will be so much con¬ 
formed to His will, and you will be so com¬ 
pletely led by the Holy Spirit, that you will ask 
according to the will of God. “What ye will,” 
will be in keeping with the will of God, and 
you shall have it. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “It is a great pity 
and a shame that so many Christians live with 
so little knowledge of the Bible. It is no won¬ 
der that their lives have no more power for 
good, and they walk so much of their way to 
heaven in the dark, and build out of hay, wood 
and stubble.” 

It all comes from not abiding in Christ, and 
not having His words abide in them. The re¬ 
deemed of the Lord ought to take time and have 
the heart to study and obey His word, and 
build their Christian lives, and their work for 
others out of its words. 


LESSON IX. 


KEEP YOURSELVES IN LOVE. 

B iUT ye, beloved, building up yourselves 
on your most holy faith, praying in the 
Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of 
God.”—Jude 20. 

Miss Mary Long: “I notice that this text 
says that Christians are to build up and keep 
themselves in faith and love. These are very 
important matters, and it seems to me that they 
involve very great responsibilities, if they fail 
to do it.” 

Yes, these are important matters, and very 
grave results follow from faithfulness or un¬ 
faithfulness in doing them. The believer is 
saved by grace through faith, and kept by the 
power of God unto salvation; and being saved 
there is much for him to do. Christ has done 
all that is necessary to be done as the ground 
of our salvation, and we are saved by grace 
through faith in Him; yet when saved we are 
to please and glorify God, and also there is 
106 



Keep Yourselves in Love. 


107 


much to be done that we may have the evidence 
that we are saved. These good works are the 
natural result of love to God in the new crea¬ 
ture, and bring untold blessings to others. 
They are the natural and unfailing result of 
the new life, and the only true and satisfactory 
manifestation of it to the world. 

Neil Johnson: “This is the reason why so 
many of us professed Christians get so little 
credit from the world for being Christians. Our 
works fail to manifest proof of the new life. 
I often ask myself, what positive evidence the 
world can see in my life to prove that I am a 
Christian? What is the best evidence to the 
world that one is a Christian ?” 

“By this shall all men know that ye are my 
disciples, if ye have love one for another.” 
“A new commandment I give unto you, that ye 
love one another; as I have loved you, that 
ye also love one another.” “We know that 
we have passed from death unto life, because 
we love the brethren.” This is the sure and 
unfailing test both to ourselves and to others, 
that we are Christians; because “love is of God, 
and everyone that loveth is born of God, and 
knoweth God.” The love of God gave His Son 
for us, and caused Christ to lay down His life 
for us; and our love ought to manifest itself 


108 


The New Life in Christ. 


in practical and personal benefits to the breth¬ 
ren. None can doubt that such love is gen¬ 
uine; and there are other evidences seen in the 
lives, acts, tempers and characters of true 
Christians. 

Burt Norman: “How are we to build up 
ourselves in our faith? It seems to me that the 
mistake of my Christian life, and probably of 
many others, is that I have not gone on to 
grow and develop in knowledge and Christian 
experience as I might.” 

Faith is a fundamental grace in Christian 
experience, and we are required to add to it 
virtue, knowledge, and all the other graces of 
the Spirit. By praying in the Holy Spirit, and 
by diligently studying the Bible to know, be¬ 
lieve and do all it teaches, we shall be able to 
grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our 
Lord Jesus Christ. It requires special trust 
in Christ, and constant exercise in these 
graces to grow and build up ourselves 
on our most holy faith. We are also 
led by faith, through the power of the 
Holy Spirit, to put off the old man with 
his deeds, and to put on the new man which is 
renewed after the image of Christ. By abid¬ 
ing in Christ we are, through the Spirit’s help, 
to put off all these, “anger, wrath, malice, bias- 


Keep Yourselves in Love. 


109 


phemy, and filthy communications out of your 
mouth. Lie not one to the other, seeing you 
have put off the old man with his deeds, and 
have put on the new man, which is renewed 
in knowledge after the image of Him that cre¬ 
ated him.” “Put on therefore as God’s elect', 
holy and beloved, a heart of compassion, kind¬ 
ness, humility, meekness, long-suffering; for¬ 
bearing one another, and forgiving each other, 
if any man have a complaint against any; even 
as the Lord forgave you, so also do ye: and 
above all these things put on love, which is 
the bond of perfectness.” 

Lee Wallace: “There is much required 
of the saved to be done from pure 
love of Christ, by the voluntary use 
of the appointed means; and it seems 
that many of these things may be lovingly 
done or sinfully neglected. Obedience brings 
blessing, while neglect and disobedience bring 
loss.” 

All who neglect the appointed means of grace 
grow cold in love, and this leads to weak mo¬ 
tives and wrong-doing. All who fail to use 
the appointed means and neglect the Bible con¬ 
ditions, come short of many great and gracious 
blessings. This is specially true of those who 
fail to keep themselves in the love of God; and 


110 


The New Life in Christ. 


it is a fearful state when a Christian grows 
lukewarm, and forsakes his first love! He be¬ 
comes offensive to God in life and conduct, loses 
interest in the commands of Christ, and leaves 
off much work he might do for the Lord. Many 
of us in this way come far short of the glory 
of God, and miss many blessings here and 
great rewards in the life to come. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “How may we keep 
ourselves in the love of God?’ 

Jesus says: "If ye keep my commandments, 
ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept 
my Father’s commandments, and abide in His 
love.” By loving obedience to all that Christ 
commands we shall be able to abide in His 
love. “He that hath my commandments, and 
keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he 
that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and 
I will love him, and manifest myself to him.” 
“If a man loveth me, he will keep my words; 
and my Father will love him, and we will 
come unto him, and make our abode with him.” 
So we are to love Christ and obey His com¬ 
mands, if we would keep ourselves in the love 
of God. 

Will Harrison: “I have felt for a long 
time that many of us who are trying to walk 


Keep Yourselves in Love. 


Ill 


in the steps of Christ are not sufficiently fa¬ 
miliar with how Christ walked, and where He 
walked. But I see more clearly now that the 
one thing needful for us all to do is to know 
what Jesus says, and then do that.” 

Our one and only duty as new creatures is to 
know what the Lord says in the Bible, and be¬ 
lieve and do that. We must study the Bible 
in order to know His words and keep His com¬ 
mandments. We are commanded to “let the 
word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wis¬ 
dom.” This we can do only by making our¬ 
selves thoroughly acquainted with all God has 
said, receiving it into our hearts by faith, and 
letting it spread its influence over our lives, 
and being controlled by it in all things. We 
shall have to look to Christ all the time for 
grace and strength to enable us to know and 
do His commands; and we are assured that, if 
we love Him and obey His words, He a id the 
Father will love us, and come unto us, and 
make their abode with us. By their presence 
and divine power to sustain, We may have ali 
the grace and strength and help we need. 

Albert Edwards: “Suppose the saved fail 
to study and know His words, and thereby fail 
to obey His commands, and abide not in His 
love, are they not then out of Christ and lost?” 


112 


The New Life in Christ. 


Not by any means; but by so doing, they fail 
to realize the love and presence of Christ and 
the Father, and lose much of the comfort and 
blessing of the presence of the Holy Spirit. 
The disobedient forfeit all the blessings of obe¬ 
dience; and these blessings are many and great. 
“If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye 
do them.” We are not saved by love, but by 
grace through faith; and love is one of the 
evidences of our salvation, and is a great com¬ 
fort in our experience; and the building upon 
our faith develops our Christian characters, 
and promotes growth and usefulness. So in 
this way we lose only that which is condi¬ 
tioned upon ourselves; and not anything which 
rests upon grace. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “My love is so cold 
and faint that I sometimes fear that I do not 
love at all. I have not only failed to use the 
means to keep myself in the love of God, but by 
neglect of His word, and by a worldly and 
disobedient life, I have smothered out the 
flame of love which once burned so brightly in 
my heart. I would be glad to return to my first 
love, but all is dark in my experience, and at 
times I fear that I am not a new creature at 
all. I do want to be conscious of His pres¬ 
ence and love as I have once felt them.” 


Keep Yourselves in Love 


113 


There were others who felt as she did, and 
she seemed to speak for all. 

“Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the 
Son of God, God abideth in him, and he in God. 
And we know and have believed the love which 
God hath to us. God is love; and he tnat 
abideth in love abideth in God, and God abid¬ 
eth in him. Herein is love made perfect with 
us.” It is often dark with God’s people because 
they keep their minds so much upon themselves, 
and their own great unworthiness. They live 
looking at themselves, and see nothing 
but darkness and despair in themselves. 
You might sit in darkness forever in 
this room with the doors, blinds and shades 
all closed; but the moment you throw open 
your window and look out towards the bright 
shining sun, the darkness will all disappear 
and it will be bright everywhere. Look away 
from your own unworthiness and sin, to Christ 
as your divine sin-bearer, and loving, able Sa¬ 
vior, and all will be bright again. Give up every 
known wrong, every evil thing, confess your 
sins, and He is faithful and just to forgive and 
cleanse from all sin. When you look to Him 
as your Savior, in whom you have pardon, 
peace and acceptance with God, you will find 
that in Him is no darkness at all. “This is the 
record that God hath given to us eternal life, 
and this life is in His Son. He that hath the 
8 


114 


The New Life in Christ . 


Son, hath life.” “If we confess our sins, He is 
faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and 
to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “It is true, that 
when I look to Christ I feel that in Him is full¬ 
ness of light, and of grace, righteousness and 
salvation; but I have not met any of the con¬ 
ditions upon which the promises and blessings 
rest, and I am not able to realize any of them. 
After I was made a new creature and found 
peace believing in Christ, I did not take up my 
Bible and read it to find my duty in His comi 
mands; but I soon went back to my old asso¬ 
ciates, and with them I went into all worldly 
amusements of the past. Instead of coming 
out from among them, and living a separate 
life, I went to the same extent of worldliness 
they did. My standing excuse was that I did 
not see any harm in the dance, card parties, 
or anything else that the world loved and en¬ 
gaged in. In this way I have spent the time of 
my new life, and most of it has been in dark¬ 
ness, and without the joys of salvation. But I 
find now that I not only give up those things 
fully and forever, but I want to know the com¬ 
mands of Christ and do them that I may abide 
in His love. I want, as Mary of old, to choose 
that good part, to sit at Jesus’ feet and learn 
of Him forever. My soul is in darkness; but 


Keep Yourselves in Love . 


115 


I can not rest till I realize that Jesus and the 
Father both love me and dwell with me.” 

Nearly all the class felt that they had been 
living in a way to come short of the glory of 
God, and were anxious to return to their first 
love, and to keep themselves in the love of God. 
They were willing to give up all sin and return 
to full obedience to Christ. 


LESSON X. 


ABIDING IN CHRIST. 

E that abideth in me, and I in him, the 
same beareth much fruit; for apart 
from me ye can do nothing”—John 
15 :5 (Revised Version). 

In this figure Christ is the vine and all true 
believers are the branches. None are branches 
living in Him except believers, who by the new 
birth have died to sin and have been made 
alive unto God by the Holy Spirit. These by 
having been born of the Spirit have been en¬ 
grafted into Christ, having been made partakers 
of the divine nature and united to Christ by 
faith, they live by faith in Him from His life, 
and from the sources of supply which are in 
Him. By union with Christ they draw from 
Him by conscious faith all they need of grace, 
strength and power to live and work for Him, 
and for the good of others. As the branch 
draws from the vine all it needs to grow and 
be fruitful, so the Christian may draw from 
Christ by faith all he needs. 

116 



Abiding in Chi'ist 


117 


Miss Hattie Warner: “I have never yet 
been able fully to realize that I am a real liv¬ 
ing branch in Christy and I have never been 
able to understand how I can draw from Christ 
by faith all the life, grace, strength, support, 
worthiness and power as I need it. I know the 
branch draws from the vine by reason of being 
one with it; but I feel that I have lived so 
far apart from Him that I have done nothing. 
I do want to abide in Him and bear much 
Christian fruit.” 

So many Christians seem to forget that they 
cannot bear fruit apart from Christ. We are 
to live all the time in conscious communion 
with Him; and relying upon the efficacy of His 
precious blood shed for our sins, we are by 
faith to obtain grace, strength and help for 
all of our needs. This is a matter of conscious 
faith in Christ, realized by trust and depend¬ 
ence upon Him; and by living in Him, and 
drawing from Him all that is needed by us in 
all things. 

Will Harrison: “For a long time I failed 
to notice that there is a double union between 
the believer and Christ; ‘Abide in me and I 
in you/ We are in Christ by regeneration 
and by a living faith, and abide in Him by 
faith and loving obedience; and He abides in 


118 


The New Life in Christ. 


us when we keep His words and live in loving 
obedience to His commands. I want to realize 
more and more of this blessed union.” 

This double union is indeed a blessed union; 
and it is a great mystery. The believer is in 
Christ, and He is in the believer; and there is 
a vital union between them which will last 
forever. As the result of this union Christ is 
their life, and because He lives, they shall live 
also; and they can never die as long as He 
lives. He is our life, and when He appears, 
we shall also appear with Him in glory. Christ 
is in them the hope of glory,as their worthiness 
and title to life eternal; and is in their new 
lives in pure godly living, and He manifests 
Himself in their true Christian characters, spir¬ 
ituality, purity, love and self-sacrificing labor 
for others. He is in them, causing them to live 
and act differently from their old lives, and 
from the way the world lives and acts all the 
time. By the Holy Spirit He guides, leads, 
comforts, consoles,moves and moulds the lives 
of all true believers, who abide in Him and He 
in them. He sweetly says, “Lo, I am with 
you alway, even to the end of the world.” 

Neil Johnson: “How is any one to get into 
Christ? He is the vine, and they are the 
branches; but they did not grow out of Christ 


Abiding in Christ, 


119 


naturally, and yet they are of the same na¬ 
ture as He is. The idea of being grafted into 
Him is not true to fact; for grafting does not 
change the nature of the graft.” 

The believer is in Christ by faith as the re¬ 
sult of the new birth, in which his nature is 
changed and made like Christ’s nature. “Of 
Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is 
made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and 
sanctification, and redemption; that, accord¬ 
ing as it is written, he that glorieth let him 
glory in the Lord.” We are in Christ as one 
with Him to receive of His righteousness, and 
to have his merit and the benefits of His atone¬ 
ment imparted to us through faith in Him. 

Burt Norman: “This Scripture shows me 
why I am not doing any more for the glory of 
God, and to help my associates. ‘He that abid- 
eth in me, and I in Him, the same beareth 
much fruit; for apart from me ye can do noth¬ 
ing.’ I have lived too far apart from Him, 
and I am practically doing nothing. I do want 
to be a true and real disciple of Christ and glor¬ 
ify the Father.” 

It is necessary for us to hold constant com¬ 
munion with Christ, and by faith draw from 
His divine life so that by it we may live; and 


120 


The New Life in Christ. 


from His infinite fullness receive such supplies 
of grace and strength that we may bear much 
fruit. “He that hath the Son hath life.” “If 
the Son make you free, ye shall be free in¬ 
deed.” Jesus says : “If ye continue in my word, 
then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall 
know the truth, and the truth shall make you 
free.” We need by constant study of the Bible 
to know the word of Christ, that we may con¬ 
tinue obedient and faithful in it, and be made 
free by it. By faith, communion and prayer 
we may receive from Christ ability to resist 
temptations, overcome Satan and the world, 
and to “put off the old man with his deeds and 
put on the new man, which is renewed in 
knowledge after the image of Him that created 
him.” 

Lee Wallace: “Apart from Christ we can 
do nothing, is a matter of every day personal 
experience; and yet many of us try the exper¬ 
iment over many times a day. I am learning 
to rely upon Him more, and less upon my own 
resolutions to do better and be good.” 

Human resolutions and efforts apart from 
Christ are vain and disappointing. All we 
have and are is from Christ, and all we shall 
ever be able to accomplish in the new life must 
be from and by Him. Let us see that His word 


Abiding in Christ. 


121 


abides in ns, and that by conscious faith, con¬ 
stant communion, trust and dependence, we 
abide in Christ; and by prayer we look to Him 
all the time, and abide in Him, so that He may 
abide in us. We shall then be His disciples 
indeed, and glorify the Father by bearing much 
fruit. 

MissMaryLong: “What about such branches 
as do not bear fruit and are taken away, and 
those who are cast forth as a branch and are 
withered, afid are burned? It seems to me that 
salvation depends, to a great extent, upon the 
Christian’s works, as to whether he is saved or 
not. I do not see how any one is saved inde¬ 
pendent of his obedience to the law.” 

Those who look to the law for salvation are 
in bondage to sin and death, because none are 
able to keep the law. They by looking to the 
law for salvation turn away from Christ and 
the merit of His atoning blood, the only means 
of salvation given of God, to the law which has 
never saved a single sinner, and never can; be¬ 
cause none have ever kept it perfectly. All 
have sinned and come short of the glory of 
God, and there is no salvation for any except 
those who are saved by grace through faith 
in Christ. 


122 The New Life in Christ. 

Those who do not bear fruit and are removed, 
are not true branches in Christ, for all new 
creatures are created in Christ unto good 
works, and do bear some fruit, and are purged 
that they may bear more fruit. 

Neil Johnson: “I wonder that any should 
look to the law for salvation, for I have never 
heard of one yet who has kept the law. If 
any depend upon the law, it ought to be one 
who has never broken it in any part.” 

False teachers went to Galatia, and sought 
to lead the Gentile Christians to look away 
from grace through faith in Christ to the law 
as a means of salvation. Paul assures them, 
by the Holy Spirit, that all who look to the 
law for life must keep the whole law or perish; 
while those who depend upon Christ are saved 
without the works of the law. 

Miss Mary Long : “How can any one be 
saved without meeting the demands of the law? 
I have not kept it perfectly, I suppose; but I 
have .never clearly seen any way to be saved 
outside of keeping the law and being good.” 

All of us are sinners by nature, and we have 
all broken the law of God, and are under its 
curse. But Christ, the Son of God, came in hu¬ 
man flesh, born under the law, and obeyed it 


Abiding in Christ . 


123 


for us; then He died under the penalty of our 
sins that He might satisfy the demands of the 
law with His own sinless blood. So He paid 
our debt with His own life blood, and set us 
free from condemnation and death; and by 
faith in Him all who believe are pardoned, just¬ 
ified and saved. Through the merits of Christ 
the Holy Spirit makes them new creatures, 
and sets them free from the love of sin; and 
being saved, they serve God from love. All 
who believe in Christ have eternal life, are par¬ 
doned, justified and saved by the merits of 
Christ, and are no longer in bondage to the 
law. They are free from the condemnation of 
sin by the law, are new creatures, and are not 
in bondage, but are children of God. They are 
saved and have no need to look to the law for 
salvation. 

Neil Johnson: “Paul says, ‘Stand fast in 
the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us 
free, and be not entangled again with the yoke 
of bondage/ Here I understand him to mean 
that Christians are not to go back to the law 
from Christianity as a means of salvation.” 

He had just pointed out that Christians are 
the children, not of the bond-woman, the law, 
but of the free, Christianity; and he urges that 
they stand fast in their freedom. “Being made 


124 The New Life in Christ. 

free from sin, ye become the servants of right¬ 
eousness.” “Then said Jesus to those Jews 
which believed on Him, If ye continue in my 
words, then are ye my disciples indeed; and 
ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall 
make you free.” Having been made free from 
the love of sin and its power to condemn, they 
are become servants of righteousness, and have 
their fruit unto holiness. By continuing to 
obey Christ’s words, and by abiding in Him 
they will preserve their freedom in Christ. 

Miss Hattie Warner : “I have been entangled 
in the old bondage of sin, and have served 
Satan more than Christ since I have believed. 
I am grieved that I should have helped to ruin 
souls instead of saving them; and should have 
done more for the enemy of souls than for 
Christ. But I am determined to never do any 
more willing work for him. I am so anxious to 
realize that I am in Christ, and that He is in 
me. I am living in such darkness! I trust 
in Christ and have hope through Him, but I do 
not realize His presence, and I do not now 
have the witness of the Spirit with my spiric 
that I am His child. I want to return to 
His side and stay there.” 

There is more of God in the small still voice 
of peace than in the earthquake and the tor- 


Abiding in Christ. 


125 


nado of stirred emotions. But, like hearing 
through the telephone, you must not stand too 
far off. The voice of the Spirit Is plain and 
distinct; but you must live close to God to 
hear it at all times. The noise of the world 
and the clamor of passions and simple pleas¬ 
ures will keep back the sound of this small, 
still voice. Let us turn each hated rival of 
Christ out of our hearts and lives, and give 
Him our whole hearts, and He will reign 
therein. 

When we walk in darkness it is because we 
are living out of fellowship with the Father. 
“God is light, and in Him is no darkness at 
all. If we* say that we have fellowship with 
Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not 
the truth: but if we walk in the light, as He 
is in the light, we have fellowship one with 
another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son 
cleanseth us from all sin.” 

Mack Norman: “I never thought of living 
out of fellowship with the Father and His 
Son. When we live in sin, and walk in dark¬ 
ness, we cannot say that we enjoy fellowship 
with God. Does not this account, in a large 
measure for our lack of the fullness of spiritual 
joy, and our failure to realize the witness of 
the Spirit with our spirit?” 


126 


The New Life in Christ . 


“Truly our fellowship is with the Father, 
and with His Son Jesus Christ.” But “God is 
light, and in Him is no darkness at all.” Now 
if we claim to have fellowship with Him while 
we walk in darkness we do not tell the truth. 
For God’s purity and our sin cannot exist in 
harmony. We must walk in the light which 
comes from God in the gospel, then we have 
fellowship one with another, and realize the 
cleansing power of the blood, of Christ. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I see plainly now 
why I have had so little Christian joy, and 
why I have not had the consciousness of His 
presence and acceptance. I have lived out) 
of fellowship with God, and was out of touch 
with His Spirit. There could be no harmony 
between my sin and His holiness; and I could 
not have spiritual joy out of fellowship with 
God. I am so glad that He says, ‘If we con¬ 
fess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive 
us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unright¬ 
eousness.’ ” 

Jesus Christ is our advocate with God, if we 
sin, He is the satisfaction for our sins. When 
we penitently confess our sins, He is faithful 
and just to forgive us our sins through faith 
in Christ, and to cleanse us from all our pol¬ 
lutions of unrighteousness; and so bring us 
back into fellowship with him. 


Abiding in Christ . 


127 


Fellowship means union and communion 
with the Father and with Christ; and this 
union and sweet communion brings fullness of 
joy to all who realize it. “These things write 
we unto you that your joy may be full.” So 
there is no reason why we may not live with 
full Christian joy, and such nearness to God 
that we may have the witness of the Spirit, 
and abide in Christ and He in us. 

Albert Edwards : “I have never thought it 
possible for one to be a Christian and live out 
of harmony with God. I have thought that 
when one lived obedient to God, he is a Chris¬ 
tian, and when he is disobedient he is not a 
Christian.” 

When any one has been born again he is a 
new creature, is in Christ and is saved through 
faith in Christ. He is then a Christian 
though he be but a babe in Christ; and by 
using the pure milk of the Word he may grow 
into a strong and useful Christian. But if he 
neglect the Bible, live in disobedience and sin, 
then he is a disobedient and sinning Christian, 
and will live under the chastenings of his lov¬ 
ing heavenly Father. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “What does Jesus 
want us to do? I find myself saying, ‘Lord, 


128 


The New Life in Christ. 


what wilt thou have me to do?’ I feel willing 
and glad to know and do whatever the Lord 
says do.” 

“This is His commandment, that w T e should 
believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ, 
and love one another, as He gave us command¬ 
ment: and he that keepeth His commandments 
dwelleth in Him, and He in him. And hereby 
we know that He abideth in us, by the Spirit 
which He hath given us.” “If ye keep my 
commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even 
as I have kept my Father’s commandments, 
and abide in His love.“ Abide in Him and 
keep His words. 


LESSON XI. 


RISEN WITH CHRIST. 

D AVING been buried with Him in 
baptism, wherein ye were raised also 
with Him through faith in the 
working of God, who raised Him 
from the dead”—Col. 2:12 (R. V.) “We were 
buried' with Him by baptism into death: that 
like as Christ was raised up from the dead by 
the glory of the Father even so we also should 
walk in newness of life.”—Rom. 6:4. 

“If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk 
by the Spirit.”—Gal. 5:25. 

The burial of the Christian in baptism sets 
forth his death to sin and the law, and his spir¬ 
itual resurrection to a new life. By the new 
birth he has been united by faith to Christ, and 
has been made one with Him; and by this 
union he becomes partaker with Him in both 
His death and resurrection. The burial in wa¬ 
ter, and being raised up again, sets forth that 
which has already taken place in the life and 
experience of every new creature. He has died 

129 


9 


130 


The New Life in Christ . 

with Christ to the penalty of sin, and by regen¬ 
eration, to its love and rule, and has risen with 
Christ by the Holy Spirit in the working of 
God, who raised Christ from the dead. 

Neil Johnson: “No one except new creat¬ 
ures can truthfully be buried with Christ in 
baptism without fearfully misrepresenting the 
truth and misleading all interested in the act. 
I have been led to think the churches ought to 
insist more strongly upon a change of heart 
and life before they admit any one to baptism.” 

The burial indicates death to sin and the law, 
which cannot exist except in those who have 
been born again. To bury any one alive is a 
great wrong, and to bury one in baptism who 
is not dead to sin, and to raise him up from 
the watery grave when he has no new life by 
the resurrecting power of the Holy Spirit, is 
sadly to misrepresent two great and glorious 
facts. To publicly declare that one has died 
to the world, and is buried with Christ into 
His death for our sins, when there has been no 
spiritual death nor resurrection, is a -wrong 
both to Christ and to the one thus buried. 

Lee Wallace: “No other act for baptism 
will express what the Bible teaches baptism to 
mean; and no other than a new life will mani- 


Risen With Christ. 


131 


fest the death, burial, and resurrection ex¬ 
pressed by Scriptural baptism.” 

There is no account of any among those 
Christians to whom Paul wrote, and of whom 
he wrote, who were not regarded as new creat¬ 
ures, and who had not been buried with Christ 
in baptism and raised to walk in newness of 
life. It is the duty and privilege of all thus 
baptized to live the new life which they have 
manifested in their baptism. 

Burt Norman: “In what way is this new 
life Scripturally manifested?” 

“If ye then be raised with Christ, seek the 
things that are above, where Christ is, seated 
on the right hand of God. Set your mind on 
the things that are above, not on the things 
that are upon the earth. For ye died, and your 
life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, 
who is our life, shall be manifested, then shall 
ye also with Him be manifested in glory.” 

If ye then be raised with Christ and are 
truly a new creature, as was manifested by 
your baptism, then seek the things that are 
above where Christ is; and set your affections 
upon Christ and heavenly things. The believ¬ 
er’s new life is wholly derived from Christ, and 
is in Him, safely hid in God; and he will be 
with Christ when He comes on that great day. 


132 


The New Life in Christ . 


So he ought to live a new life, giving up all the 
evil desires and practices of the old life, and 
live a pure, godly life in keeping with the 
principles of his new nature. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “How can we live 
this life? We are so weak, and evil influences 
are so strong.” 

We are to walk in this new life by virtue of 
our union with Christ. We are to obtain from 
Him, through faith, all the grace, strength and 
power we need; and the Holy Spirit, who dwells 
in us, will supply us with all the help and 
spiritual blessings necessary for our use. Re¬ 
liance upon Christ and His merit and power, 
obedience to all He says in His word, and 
prayer for the Holy Spirit’s guidance and 
blessing, will enable the Christian to walk in 
newness of life, and be separate from the world 
in life and heart. Then our burial in baptism 
will be seen to have been no mockery, but a real 
truth. 

Neil Johnson: “Christians ought not to 
say one thing in their baptisms, and a different 
thing in their daily lives. If they submit to 
baptism because they love the Lord Jesus 
Christ, and want to obey His commands; then 
the same love to Him should lead them to de- 


Risen With Christ . 


133 


ny themselves all ungodliness, and worldliness, 
and take up their crosses daily and follow Him. 
It ought to lead them to put off the old life of 
sin, and put on the new life which is renewed 
after the image of Christ.” 

The new birth not only means the believer’s 
death in Christ to sin, the law and the old life; 
but it also means his resurrection from spirit¬ 
ual death, and his being alive to Christ. In 
this spiritual resurrection he was made a new 
creature in Christ, the old things, as his guilt, 
condemnation, hatred of God, love of sin, and 
the old life of the flesh, have all passed away, 
and he lives a new life of faith in Christ, love 
to God, and obedience to His commands. He 
professes that this is a fact when he is buried 
in baptism; and it is expected that this new life 
be manifested in all he does. 

Will Harrison : “This ought not to be hard 
for a real Christian to do; for he is a new 
creature, has new spiritual tastes, aims and 
purposes, and is guided by the Holy Spirit. 
Living in Christ, he may draw by faith all 
the grace, strength and power he needs to en¬ 
able him to live this new life in Christ.” 

“Ye are not in the rfesh, but in the Spirit, 
if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.” 


134 


The New Life in Christ. 


If one is in the Spirit, he ought naturally to 
manifest the fruits of the Spirit by living in 
loving obedience to Christ. “If we live by 
the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” 
“Walk by the Spirit and ye shall not fulfill the 
lusts of the flesh.” 

Neil Johnson: “God says we should not 
be deceived, ‘For whatsoever a man soweth, 
that shall he also reap. He that soweth to his 
own flesh, shall of the flesh reap corruption; 
but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the 
Spirit reap eternal life/ It is strange that any 
one should lose sight of the fact that we all 
sow what we shall reap!” 

Church members profess to be new creatures, 
and to live after the Spirit; and the Lord 
warns them not to be deceived, for they can 
not trifle with God. The harvest they reap 
shall be from the seed they plant with their 
own hands. If they sow to the flesh, they shall 
reap corruption, but if they sow to the Spirit, 
they shall reap eternal life. Surely all will 
plant just the seed they wish to reap! Espec¬ 
ially will Christians live the kind of life they 
want the harvest to be. 

Will Harrison: “It is well to ask our¬ 
selves, how am I living? After the flesh? or 


Risen With Christ . 


135 


after the Spirit? He says: ‘Examine your¬ 
selves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your 
own selves. Know ye not your own selves, 
how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be 
reprobates V ” 

It is good for us to put ourselves to the test 
as to Christian character; are we really in 
union with Christ by faith? or are we repro¬ 
bates, cannot bear the test, and rejected be¬ 
cause we do not come up to the test? 

The true answer to this question will tell us 
plainly, what kind of harvest we shall reap, 
and it will also show us clearly whether we 
are new) or old creatures. “For they 
that are after the flesh, do mind the 
things of the flesh; but they that are after 
the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For 
to be carnallv-minded is death; but to be 
spiritually-minded is life and peace.” Are we 
governed by our old unregenerated natures, 
and do we live as we did before we professed 
to know the Lord? The carnal, or unrenewed 
nature is enmity against God, and those who 
live under its influence are sowing to the flesh, 
and will reap death; while all who live after 
the Spirit prove that they are new creatures 
and in Christ, and shall reap eternal life. “If 
ye live after the flesh, ye shall die; but if ye 
through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the 


136 


The 'New Life in Christ . 


body, ye shall live.” So those who live the same 
old ungodly, fleshly lives of the past, are sowing 
to the flesh for a harvest of death. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “If we live by the 
Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. What are 
the evidences that we are walking by the 
Spirit?” 

To walk by the Spirit is to be guided by the 
Spirit, and all who act under His influence 
will not live the same worldly, fleshly lives 
which they lived in their unrenewed state. But 
having been made alive and led by the Holy 
Spirit they may mortify the deeds of the body, 
and manifest the fruits of the Spirit. “They 
that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with 
the passions and lusts thereof.” “Mortify 
therefore your members which are upon the 
earth;” “for which thing’s sake the wrath of 
God comes upon the children of disobedience; 
in the which ye also walked before time, when 
ye lived in them. But now put ye off all these; 
anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy com¬ 
munications out of your mouth. Lie not one 
to another, seeing ye have put off the old man 
with his deeds; and have put on the new man, 
which is renewed in knowledge after the im¬ 
age of Him that created him.” The putting off 
the works of the flesh is one evidence that we 


Risen With Christ . 


137 


are in the Spirit; as it is a result of walking 
in the Spirit, and is a part of the new life. 
While putting on love, joy, peace, long suffer¬ 
ing, gentleness, goodness, meekness, and tem¬ 
perance, the fruits of the Spirit, is positive 
proof that one is a new creature. 

The Spirit also leads us to, “put on as God’s 
elect, holy and beloved, a heart of compassion, 
kindness, humility, meekness, long suffering, 
forbearing one another, and forgiving each 
other, if any man have a complaint against 
any, even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye: 
and above all these put on love, which is the 
bond of perfectness.” 

Lee Wallace : “It ought not to be difficult 
for us each one to tell whether we are living 
after the flesh or after the Spirit. It seems to 
me, that all who love the Lord ought to put 
away from them the works of the flesh, and put 
on the fruits of the Spirit.” 

The divine grace is sufficient for us, and we 
have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, able and 
willing to do the work, if we would only yield 
ourselves to be guided and led by Him. The 
unregenerate in the churches may put off 
some of their grosser outward sins; but they 
do not put on the pure fruits of the Spirit. 
“By their fruits ye shall know them;” “if any 


138 


The New Life in Christ. 


man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of 
His.” It is difficult to believe that many in the 
churches are new creatures, because they man¬ 
ifest neither the mind nor the Spirit of Christ, 
and the fruit of their lives is after the flesh. 

Mack Norman: "If we are new creatures, 
why is it we sow to the flesh at all? Why are 
we not led by the Spirit?” 

We are not out of the body, and while we 
live in it, we will find it necessary to watch 
against the world, the flesh, and the devil. If 
we walk after the Spirit, we shall not fulfill 
the the desires of the flesh and mind, nor sow 
to the flesh. We do not wish to reap the har¬ 
vest of death, let us therefore not sow the seeds 
of death; but sow to the Spirit for a harvest 
of life. Let us yield ourselves up to the Holy 
Spirit and He will lead us into all truth, and 
into true and pure spiritual lives; and we will 
reap eternal life. 


LESSON XII. 


YOKE OP BONDAGE. 

E E NOT entangled again with, the yoke of 
bondage.”—Gal. 5 :1. 

Christians were in bondage by their 
carnal natures to the love and service of sin, 
and were under the condemnation of the law 
to eternal death. But Christ has redeemed 
them from condemnation and death; and by 
the new birth He has given them a new nature, 
which has freed them from the love of sin and 
slavery of Satan. 

Miss Mary Long: “How is it that all men 
by nature are slaves of sin, and in bondage to 
Satan ? I have often heard it said, that all men 
are the children of God, and that they are liv¬ 
ing under His Fatherly care and protection. 
I cannot reconcile this condition with your 
frequent statements, that by nature all are 
corrupt and in bondage.” 

God says, “By one man sin entered into the 
world, and death by sin; and so death passed 

139 


140 


The New Life in Christ. 


upon all men, for that all have sinned.” 
‘There is none righteous, no, not one,” and 
‘‘They are all gone out of the way, they are 
together become unprofitable; there is none 
that doeth good, no, not one.” Jesus said, “Ye 
are of your father the devil, and the lusts of 
your father ye will do. He was a murderer 
from the beginning, and abode not in the 
truth, because there is no truth in him. When 
he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of h'is own: for 
he is a liar, and the father of it.” By nature 
we are all children of a different father than 
God; and we do the will of our father, and not 
the will of God. Jesus says also: “He that is 
of God heareth God’s words,” and “If God 
were your Father, ye would love Me.” 

Will Harrison: “Explain how Christians 
are made free from the condemnation and bon¬ 
dage of the law. In a state of nature they are 
subject to the law, and under its condemna¬ 
tion, because of their many violations.” 

Christ came in the flesh, made under the 
law; and as our substitute, obeyed the law for 
us: then in His atoning death He suffered the 
penalty of our sins, and satisfied all the de¬ 
mands of the iawi against us, and set us free 
from condemnation. When we are accepted of 
God in Christ, we are no longer under the law, 


Yoke of Bondage . 141 

but are under grace; for “Christ is the end of 
the law for righteousness to every one that 
believeth.” The believer looks no longer to the 
law as a means of his salvation, or death. He 
is saved by grace through faith, because Christ 
has fully satisfied all the demands of the law. 
In Christ, his surety, he died to the law, and 
met all it demanded; and in Christ he rose from 
the dead to live a new life. He is saved in 
Christ, and has in him all the grace, strength, 
and means to live a new life; and should never 
go back to his old life of bondage any more. 

Lee Wallace: “How are we to stand firm 
in the liberty of Christ, with which He has 
made us free?” 

Christians stand firm in their liberty in 
Christ when they believe and obey His words, 
depend upon Him alone for salvation; and 
never look away from the merit of His atoning 
death to anything else for life and salva¬ 
tion. They are not to consent for one moment 
to look to anything else but Christ, nor think 
of good works as a means of merit, nor look 
to the law in any sense as a savior. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I am not willing to 
trust my salvation to anything else than Christ 
and Him crucified. I know my own life is im- 


142 


The New Life in Christ. 


perfect, and I dare not trust myself under tlihe 
righteous law of God, for it would condemn 
me. The grace of God in Christ, the redemp¬ 
tion secured by His atoning death, and His 
own divine keeping power, make up my only 
hope.” 

Christ needs no other help to enable Him to 
save you. He has paid your debt, redeemed 
you from bondage and death with His blood, 
brought you full and complete pardon, justified 
you from all things, reconciled you to God, 
given you eternal life, and saved you with a 
present and eternal salvation; and you 
have no need to look to any other savior 
nor to anything else to help Him save you. 
“He is able also to save them to the uttermost 
that come unto God by Him.” While those 
who depend upon their own poor works, and 
and look to the law for salvation, are in bon¬ 
dage to condemnation, and know nothing of 
the liberty of the saved. The obedience of the 
saved is a labor of love, doing works from love 
to Christ, because He has so completely and 
gloriously saved them. 

Miss Hattie Warner : “I am truly sorry 
I ever went back to the bondage of my did 
life; and I never intend to willingly go back 


Yoke of Bondage 


143 


to it any more. I am looking to Christ all the 
time for grace and strength and freedom.” 

Stand fast in your liberty in Christ, and 
never give up your trust and hope in Him, while 
you also never consent to go back to your old 
habits' of sin and worldliness. We should 
never consent to take the yoke of bondage of 
our old lives upon us any more; but should 
put off the old man, the flesh, with his deeds; 
and, as obedient children of God, put on the 
new man, which is renewed after the image of 
Christ. We should stand in the power of His 
might, upheld by the almighty power of God, 
who is able to keep us from falling and to pre¬ 
sent us blameless at last. 

Miss Hattie said, much to herself: “It is 
a sad thing for a Christian to go back to the 
world and be entangled in the bondage of the 
sins and habits of his old unconverted life. 
Jesus alone can set him free and make him 
free indeed.” 

One of the saddest scenes of the Old Testa¬ 
ment is of the Lord’s people in bondage. Their 
harps hang unstrung upon the willows, and 
they refuse to sing the Lord’s songs in a for¬ 
eign land. They had so grievously sinned in 
departing from the Lord, that He gave them 


144 


The New Life in Christ. 


over into tlie hands of their enemies- to serve 
in cruel bondage till they should be made will¬ 
ing by their slavery to serve the true and living 
God. When they turned in sorrow from their 
transgressions, and in deep repentance sought 
the Lord, He turned to them and brought them 
back to their own land. They said, they were 
like them that dreamed when the Lord turned 
again their captivity. * It seemed too good to 
be true. This life of bondage was one of great 
bitterness, unrest and dissatisfaction. We 
should never consent to give up the loving ser¬ 
vice of Christ, and go back to our old lives of 
disobedience in the service of Satan. 

Albert Edwards: “When a Christian goes 
back and is entangled in his old yoke of bon¬ 
dage, does he not then cease to be a Christian? 
Why call him a Christian in bondage ?” 

He is not in bondage to the law of sin and 
death; nor is he in bondage to condemnation. 
He has simply gone and put his neck under 
the old yoke he once wore, and is serving Satan 
in the habits of his former life. 

Charles Warner: “After my conversion I 
lived a happy, useful Christian life for some 
time; but gradually I began to neglect my 
Bible and my Christian duties, and went back 


Yoke of Bondage. 


145 


into sin and worldliness, and lost the joys of 
salvation, and the bright evidence of my ac¬ 
ceptance with God in Christ. For some time 
I was in great spiritual darkness, and thought 
I was not a Christian, and tried to obtain a 
new Christian experience. I knew the way of 
life, and needed not to be taught to know the 
Lord; but my soul was in darkness, and my 
Savior’s face was hid from me, and I had no 
joy for some time. This is my fearful experi¬ 
ence of this present time; and I have sought a 
new experience of grace, but all in vain. You 
have mentioned my true condition better in this 
lesson than I can tell it myself. But how shall 
I return to the Lord, and have Him restore to 
me the joys of His salvation?” 

Remember Israel’s bondage, and his repen¬ 
tance. When he gave up his idolatry, and 
turned away from all his sins, and in deep 
sorrow turned to the Lord, he returned to him, 
and brought him back to enjoy his fertile and 
goodly land. So if we depart from the Lord, 
and turn back to Satan’s service, we may ex¬ 
pect to live in darkness, sorrow and chasten¬ 
ing till we turn back to the Lord, give up 
every evil way and serve Him. Then He turns 
.to us and relieves our shoulders from the 
burdens, our souls from darkness, our hearts 
from sorrow and our lives from cruel bondage. 
10 


146 


The New Life in Christ. 


Then we feel that the Lord has done great 
things for us whereof we are glad. 

Lee Wallace: “Our Lord says: ‘As many 
as I love, I rebuke and chasten; be zealous 
therefore and repent. Behold I stand at the 
door and knock: if any man hear my voice, 
and open the door, I will come in to him, and 
will sup with him, and he with me.’ May it 
not be the loving voice of Christ we hear when 
darkness comes over our souls, and we find 
ourselves in trouble or afflictions? ‘If any 
man hear my voice, and open the door, I will 
come in unto him.’ I like to listen for His 
voice, and be ready to open to Him and have 
Him come in and sup with me, and I with 
Him.” 

Yes, we ought to live looking unto Jesus and 
listening for His voice, that we may not keep 
Him waiting, nor compel Him to speak louder 
or with more emphasis. He has a loving reason 
for all He does in our experiences; and would 
keep us near His side in loving obedience, and 
out of the cruel bondage of sin. 

Albert Edwards: “If Christians are saved 
by grace, and kept by the power of God unto 
salvation, why does He not also keep them 
from going back to any old bondage of sin? 


Yoke of Bondage. 


147 


and why does not His love keep them in the 
way of perfect obedience so that they might not 
have to suffer from His chastening love?” 

The Lord will have voluntary, loving service, 
and He deals with His people as rational free 
agents, and not as mere machines. He deals 
with us as with children, and appeals to our 
reason, our love, hopes, fears, and not as with 
irrational and unresponsible matter. He 
sets before us the hope of reward, the blessings 
of obedience and the chastehings of disobedi¬ 
ence, and also moves us by His love, and prom¬ 
ises of His grace and strength in all our times 
of need. He stands at the door ready to come 
in to us and help in all our needs, as soon as 
we yield unto Him and welcome Him into our 
lives. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I am sure that I 
am willing to welcome Him into my heart and 
life, as I have never been before. I think I 
hear His voice, and I am willing to open to 
Him, and I know He will enter and sup with 
me, and I with Him.” 

Yes, He will commune with you and you with 
Him; and this mutual fellowship will be full 
of joy. He will bear all your guilt and take 
your sins away, and bear your griefs and 


148 


The New Life in Christ. 


carry your cares and sorrows; and you will live 
by His life, be saved by His grace, be worthy 
in His worthiness, strong in His strength, re¬ 
ceive of His fulness, and be complete in Him. 

Charles Warner: “I am in position to see 
the truth of this Scripture, and to hear the 
voice of my Savior; I am sick of my sin and 
weary of my wanderings, and feel that I am 
ready, and glad to return to the Lord, and to 
His service. I believe that I have so fully ex¬ 
perienced the bitterness of departing from God, 
and of wearing the galling yoke of bondage, 
that I will never consent to be entangled by it 
again. I am truly ashamed of the past, and 
wonder how I ever consented to live so long 
in that kind of spiritual bondage, when liberty 
in Christ is so sweet.” 

It is truly a sad thing for children of God 
to live under any yoke of bondage. They might 
be as free in life, and as happy in heart, as they 
are free from condemnation, and eternal death 
in Christ. If they walked by the Spirit, and 
lived in Christ, they would never go back to 
their old bondage any more. Samson lost his 
great strength by sinning against Gfld; and 
deprived of his sight, he served his enemies 
in cruel bondage. In blindness and darkness 
of soul he labored for the gain and pleasure 


Yoke of Bondage 


140 


of those who hated him, feeling all the time 
that he had sold himself for naught. How 
many Christians grind in the mills of Satan’s 
service, and serve him in sorrow and darkness 
when they might be serving God in joy! 

The entire class were greatly interested in 
this lesson; and there were none of them who 
did not feel a personal interest in it. They 
all realized that to a greater or less extent they 
had departed from the full service of Christ, 
and had gone into bondage to Satan. Some 
of them wept as they thought of themselves, 
like Samson, in darkness and sorrow serving 
their enemy, and bringing reproach upon their 
God and His cause. Shorn of their strength 
and influence as Christians, their usefulness 
gone, as captives of Satan they spend their 
time in his service; a grief to their friends and 
brethren, a hindrance tc the cause of Christ, 
and a reproach to their Lord. 

Earnest prayer went up to God that they 
might repent and turn back to God, and be 
free indeed from bondage; and be enabled to 
stand fast in their liberty in Christ. 


LESSON XIII. 


FRUITLESS HEARERS. 

HAT which fell among thorns, are they, 
which, when they have heard, go forth, 
and are choked with cares, and riches, 
and pleasures of this life, and bring no 
fruit to perfection.”—Luke 8:14. 

“A hearer of the word, and not a doerand, 
“being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the 
work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” 
“Be ye doers of the word and not forgetful 
hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”— 
James 1:23; 25:22. 

Mack Norman: “I have been led to think 
that first passage of Scripture refers to the un¬ 
saved in every case of the parable except the 
last; and you know we are considering the new 
life lived by new creatures.” 

This Scripture says: “The seed is the word 
of God,” and it is the means used by the Holy 
Spirit to bring sinners to repentance and faith 
in Christ. “Being born again, not of corrupti* 
150 




Fruitless Hearers . 


151 


ble seed, but of incorruptible, by the. word of 
God, which liveth and abideth forever.” The 
word is also the means to be used by the new 
born babes in Christ that they may grow there¬ 
by out of spiritual infancy; and by the word 
of God new creatures in Christ are to know 
the truth and be made free by it from the 
bondage of their old lives into the liberty of 
their new lives in Christ. The text tells us why 
the word does not make new creatures out of 
many sinners who hear it; and why many 
Christians are not made better by hearing it. 
The word is hindered by the world. 

Mack Norman : “You think it applies with 
equal force to the saved and the unsaved?” 

It applies to all who ever hear or read the 
Word after the manner mentioned. The parable 
divides all hearers of the word into four classes. 
Those who hear or read the Bible thoughtless¬ 
ly; then the emotional, who hear with glad¬ 
ness and quickly forget it; the worldly, in 
whise minds it is choked by cares, riches, pleas¬ 
ures, and other things; and finally those who 
hear, understand, believe and obey the word. 
In the lives of these last hearers it bears fruit: 
but in all the other hearers it brings no fruit 
to perfection. 


152 


The New Life in Christ. 


Neil Johnson : “We learn from this pas¬ 
sage of Scripture, that the way we read or hear 
the word of God decides our characters and 
lives for time and for eternity; and the hin¬ 
drances in the influence of the word of God 
over the hearts and lives of the people consist 
in the way they hear.” 

This seems to be true. The soil where the 
thorns grow and choke the word may be just 
as fertile as any in the field; but there is such 
growth of thorns that the seeds are shaded 
and choked by their growth. In the same way 
the word of God is choked in many lives, by the 
cares of life, the deceitfulness of riches, the 
pleasures of the world, and the influence of 
other things, which fill the mind and choke 
out the influence of the word from bearing 
fruit. This is true of many who hear the word, 
as well before as after they are new creatures. 
Whenever the word of God is heard, under¬ 
stood, believed and obeyed, it bears fruit in 
the life, whether it be to lead the unsaved to 
Christ or the saved to a purer and more useful 
life. The greatest trouble with many new creat¬ 
ures is that they fail to read or hear the word 
of God, and understand, believe and obey it, 
and let it produce fruit in their lives. 

Neil Johnson: “This is the main reason 
why so many young men and women who come 


Fruitless Hearers. 


153 


into the churches with so much promise of use¬ 
fulness, and remain as dead weight, and many 
of them a positive hindrance to the cause and 
a reproach to the church ?” 

This is the cause, I am sure, in a great many 
cases. A man in middle life professed conver¬ 
sion and joined my church and gave promise of 
becoming a very useful member. I hoped that 
he would become a consecrated, spiritually- 
minded Christian man; and I could see no rea¬ 
son why he should not put the same wisdom, 
energy and common sense into the Lord’s work 
which he put into his own business. As I knew 
he was not accustomed to do things by halves, 
I did earnestly hope to see him become a whole- 
souled, spiritually-minded, useful member. I 
told him how I wanted him to be at least as 
successful a church member as he was a busi¬ 
ness man. But my expectations were doomed 
to bitter disappointment. He was fully oc¬ 
cupied with his business, and in a short time 
gave little or no attention to the Bible, either 
at home or at church. The cares of the world, 
and the deceitfulness of riches, choked the 
word, and it brought no fruit to perfection. 
He was successful in business; but, as far as 
we could see, his Christian life and church mem¬ 
bership were failures. He was too weary or 
busy to read the Bible, and had really no time 


154 


The New Life in Christ. 


from his cares and business to commune with 
God. On Sunday he was too tired to go to 
Sunday School and study the Bible, and fre¬ 
quently he was not at preaching; and if there, 
he would not take enough interest in the 
preaching to keep him from going to sleep. He 
did not give liberally to church expenses ac¬ 
cording to his ability, and was accounted a fail¬ 
ure as a church member. The word was choked 
in his life, and brought no fruit to perfection. 

Lee Wallace : “Such members make it hard 
to believe that they really know the Lord. It 
is almost as difficult to believe them Christians 
as it is to believe the immoral Christians.” 

We doubted very much his piety, and could 
only pray for him, for he was so filled with 
business that the word was choked out of his 
life. 

There was another member there who was 
much given to thirst for drink, and he lived 
more of his time out of the church than in it. 
He helped Satan to ruin more souls than he 
helped to bring to Christ, and neither of 
them were ever regarded or treated as real true 
Christians by those without, and they were a 
constant trouble to many in the church. 

Neil Johnson : “It has seemed to me that 
in some churches a majority of the members 


Fruitless Hearers . 


155 


are the same kind as the two whom yon de¬ 
scribed. If it is not business or drink, it is 
worldliness, worldly amusements, immorality 
or some other sin or wrong-doing, which has 
choked out the Bible from producing the fruit 
of obedience to Christ in their lives.” 

Yes, quite a majority of the members of that 
church were unfruitful as far as could be seen. 
I preached to them the word of God, and tried 
to build them up in the faith and in Christian 
life; but they were so much filled with the cares 
of life, its pleasures, frivolities, or pride, that 
the word preached failed to reach their hearts 
and characters. Some of them even became 
angry at me because they thought I had 
preached the sermon just to fit their cases. 
Others were too much occupied with the pleas¬ 
ures of this life to think or care seriously about 
the word preached, and be led by it to repent¬ 
ance and faithful obedience to God. Few of 
them ever read the Bible or prayed that the 
Holy Spirit would help them understand and 
obey it. When it was read in the church wor¬ 
ship, they were too much occupied with other 
things to remember what was read. Many 
people seem not to have “ears to hear” the 
word of God. 

Mack Norman : “Many church members are 
like the little boy who passing a carpenter’s 


156 


The New Life in Christ 


shop with a basket of apples, poured them out 
to fill his basket with cedar blocks; and he 
gave up the apples for that which pleased him 
better; so church members leave the Bible and 
fruitfulness in their Christian lives, for just 
such things as please them more. Is it possible 
that those who feel and act in this way can real¬ 
ly be Christians?” 

Let us ask Miss Hattie what she thinks about 
it. Can those who are really Christians, who 
as helpless sinners trusting Christ and hoping 
to be saved by Him, can they care enough for 
the pleasures of this life, or for the care of 
other things, as to so choke out the word of 
God that it will bring no Christian fruit to 
perfection in their lives? 

Miss Hattie Warner : “It seems to me that 
any Christian experience would be sufficient to 
answer this question. With some they have 
more power possibly than with others, but the 
lives of few young Christians seem to me to 
be entirely free from the choking of the thorns 
of the pleasures of this life.” 

Miss Mary Long: “If the Christian is fully 
saved by grace through the imputed righteous¬ 
ness of Christ, and is not under the law, but 
under grace, and is free from condemnation, 


Fruitless Hearers. 


157 


and nothing can separate him from the love of 
God; how is it that the Word of the Lord may 
be choked out of his life, and he will suffer loss 
in the life to come? I do not ask this for con¬ 
tention, but to know the truth as it is in Christ, 
revealed in the Bible.” 

God deals with us as with children, and he 
says: “My son despise thou not the chastening 
of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked 
of Him; for whom the Lord loves He chastens, 
and scourges every son whom He receives.” 
When made a new creature we are received 
into the family of God. The Holy Spirit, who 
made us new creatures, abides in us to lead, 
comfort and form us into the likeness of Christ, 
and to move us by love to do all Christ com¬ 
mands us to do. If we are obedient, we receive 
a reward; but if disobedient, we are chastened 
and brought back to the path of duty. 

Miss Mary Long : “Why does not the Fath¬ 
er’s love that saves, and power that keeps him 
saved, also keep him from disobedience?” 

I have no doubt that He could do it if He 
wished; but He wants free, voluntary, loving 
service, and so deals with him as a son. When 
he goes into sin the Father’s love will follow 
him and chasten him sore, if needs be, till he 


158 The New i Life in Christ. 

returns. We are told bj' Him not to despise 
the Lord’s chastenings, nor faint, nor fall into 
despondency, when chastened by Him. “For 
whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges 
every son whom He receives.” When we suffer 
chastening, let us remember that God is deal¬ 
ing with us as children; for there is no son 
whom his father does not chasten, and all 
Christians partake of the Lord’s chastenings. 
If ye be without chastisement, whereof all of 
God’s children are partakers, then are ye false 
professors, and not Christians. The Lord 
would lovingly lead us into obedient, happy, 
useful lives. 

Burt Norman: “If we do not treat lightly 
the Lord’s chastenings, nor be discouraged, 
then we should gain hope and courage by them, 
because we know they prove that God does love 
us, and would save us from disobedience and 
loss of blessing now and of reward in the life 
to come.” 

“No chastening for the present seems to be 
joyous, but grievous: nevertheless, afterwards 
it yieldeth the peaceable fruits of righteous¬ 
ness unto them which are exercised thereby.” 
If our sufferings, trials and afflictions lead us 
to hunt up the wrong in us and turn away from 
it and obtain repentance and forgiveness and 


Fruitless Hearers. 


159 


cleansing from it, then we are exercised by it. 
When we learn to hear our Father’s voice call¬ 
ing us in love, in all of our afflictions, back 
close to His loving heart, we will know what 
it is to be dealt with by the Lord as children. 
We should humble ourselves therefore “under 
the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt us 
in due time.” The more readily we yield to 
the Lord’s chastenings, the more profit we will 
obtain from them, and the less reward we will 
suffer the loss of at last. 

Neil Johnson : ’’When we neglect the Bible, 
or violate the plain commands of Christ, we 
ought to expect the chastening hand of God; 
for His love has done so much for us, and will 
not leave us alone now. If we build out of hay, 
wood or stubble either in our own lives or in 
the cause of Christ in the world, we will have 
to do so in much darkness, and under many 
chastenings of the Lord.” 

God deals with us in love for our profit. “As 
many as I love, I rebuke and chasten; be zeal¬ 
ous therefore and repent.” We should never 
lose sight of the fact that he deals with us in 
love for our profit; and yield ourselves up to 
Him as dear children and be exercised by His 
chastenings, that they may produce in us the 
peaceable fruits of righteousness. The Lord’s 


160 


The New Life in Christ 


object in our cliastenings is that we may be 
“partakers of His holiness.” 

Miss Mary Long: “There are some who 
think that God will not allow His own blessed, 
loved, true children to suffer here in this life, 
and they think that suffering indicates God’s 
disapprobation and 'great sinfulness.” 

I once collected money for an aged and afflict¬ 
ed minister, and a sister who contributed said 
she would help the old brother, but she did not 
believe the Lord would let that dear, good old 
minister suffer. I told her, he was suffering 
then, and the Lord had never promised that 
we should be free from suffering. John, the 
disciple whom Jesus loved, writes from the 
isle of his banishment: “John, who am your 
brother and companion in tribulation;” and 
he also wrote: “These are they which come out 
of great tribulation and have washed their 
robes and made them white in the blood of the 
Lamb.” 

Will Harrison: “We should rejoice that 
our afflictions work for us a far more exceeding 
and eternal weight of glory, and shall make us 
partakers of His glory.” 

Are you without chastening? Then you may 
well fear that you are not a new creature, and 


Fruitless Hearers. 


161 


it is full certain that you are not developing 
into the fullness of the new life. But you suf¬ 
fer? Then be zealous and repent and turn 
more fully to God. Remember also that, “He 
hath not dealt with us after our sins, nor re¬ 
warded us according to our iniquities; but as 
the heavens are higher than the earth, so great 
is His mercy toward them that fear Him.” Also 
remember that He deals with us as sons for 
our profit, that we may be partakers of His 
holiness. We suffer from His hand that we may 
be made better. He rebukes and chastens in 
love. Let us by faith receive it in love and be 
profited by it. 

Neil Johnson: “Returning to the fruitless 
hearers, it is hard for me to understand how a 
Christian can neglect the word of God! His 
ignorance of truth and duty, his darkness of 
soul, his hunger for the bread of life and his 
soul-thirst after God, ought to lead him to 
read and study the Bible. I just cannot see 
how a child of God can live without daily read¬ 
ing it to know the will of God.” 

Yet many live a long way off from this, their 
source of supply, and they often live equally 
as far from the throne of grace. Like an army 
cut off from its source of supply, they are very 

much enfeebled. 

11 


162 


The New Life in Christ . 


A young man came to the church from a 
home of almost poverty and want. His edu¬ 
cation was very limited, and he had to labor 
at hard work to help supporta widowed mother. 
He loved his Bible, and it was the guide of his 
youth, and he read it and put it into daily 
practice. As the years went by he accumu¬ 
lated some money, and began to lay by the 
tenth of his income as the Lord’s. He con¬ 
tinued to study his Bible and to put it into 
practice in his business and in his daily life; 
and long before he reached middle life he was 
the best informed and most useful man in his 
church. He was a Christian man among men, 
and his influence was felt far and near by his 
denomination in his State. 

There was in the same church with him an¬ 
other young man, a college graduate, a teacher, 
a man of good mind and fine parts; and he 
professed faith in Christ but neglected to read 
the Bible. He knew almost nothing of the 
word of God and could not teach it. He did 
not live it, because he had not made it the man 
of his council, nor his daily companion. He 
was of no force in his church. The Bible 
known and lived made the one a power for 
good; while the ignorance of it made the other 
unfruitful. What will you be as a Christian 
in the years to come, judging by your present 
knowledge and use of the Bible? 


LESSON XIV. 


HIGH CALLING IN CHRIST. 

HIS one thing I do, forgetting those 
things which are behind, and reaching 
forth unto those things which are be¬ 
fore, I press toward the mark for the 
prize of the high calling of God in Christ 
Jesus”—Phil. 3:13, 14. 

“Thou shalt see greater things than these.” 
—John 1 :50. 

Paul had been made a new creature in Christ, 
and it was his purpose to reach the very high¬ 
est possibilities in the new life. His one aim 
was to press toward the mark for the prize of 
the high calling of God in Christ. God has 
called us to the high duties, privileges and re¬ 
sponsibilities of saints, and we should strive 
to reach the highest attainments possible in 
the new life; and should be seeking to know 
more of Christ and the power of His resur¬ 
rection. Paul wanted to be found trusting in 
Christ, and in no sense depending upon him¬ 
self. 



163 


164 


The New Life in Christ. 


Neil Johnson: “‘That I may win Christ’? 
Do you think he had any doubt as to his own 
salvation ? or was this rather his earnest desire 
to reach the fullest possible results of being 
saved by grace?” 

He would reach the highest possible results, 
“That I may lay hold upon that for which also 
I am laid hold upon of Christ Jesus.” He had 
willingly suffered the loss of all things when 
he gave up Judaism, and all earthly advant¬ 
ages, even home and family, for the excellency 
of the knowledge of Christ. Now he does not 
stop to count up the victories, nor enumerate 
the attainments of the past, but constantly 
presses forward to the high possibilities of the 
future. 

Mack Norman: “When the Lord told Nath¬ 
aniel that he should see greater things than he 
had yet seen, does He not tell him what is pos¬ 
sible to all who believe if they continue faithful 
and believing?” 

“Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the 
angels of God ascending and descending upon 
the Son of man.” Christ is the means of com¬ 
munication between earth and heaven, and be¬ 
tween God and man. By His life and death as 
mediator He has opened full and free commun- 


High Calling in Christ . 


165 


ication with. God, and we may receive all the 
grace, strength and help we need through 
Christ, and attain to the highest experiences 
of grace and blessing here and to the “crown 
of righteousness,” the “crown of life” and the 
“crown of glory” in the life to come. 

As the disciples were to see these greater 
things in the fuller knowledge of Christ’s me¬ 
diatorial work, so may we realize more fully the 
blessings and privileges of that work of Christ. 
We may realize more fully that ready access 
is opened between us and God, and we may 
approach Him through Christ at any time, and 
receive from Him all fullness of blessings in 
Christ. 

Lee Wallace : “Why is it that so many who 
profess to be Christians are not careful to 
give up all sin and live with patience the Chris¬ 
tian life, looking to Christ as the author and 
finisher of their faith?” 

We are commanded to lay aside every weight 
and the sins which do so easily beset us, and 
run with patience the race set before us; but 
many at least seem to come short of what they 
might have been and done as Christians, if 
they had only gone on faithfully to the end 
of their possibilities. Like Lot they fall 
into a fearful mistake by making a selfish 


166 


The New Life in Christ. 


choice. He chose the entire plain, and 
pitched his tent toward Sodom. The next we 
hear of him he is in that wicked city, taken 
prisoner by its enemies and rescued by Abra¬ 
ham ; and when Sodom is destroyed by fire he is 
saved alive with his two daughters, only by be¬ 
ing forcibly brought out by the angels. All he 
had and all the others of his family are lost with 
the city and he is saved as by fire. It is a sad 
day when a Christian makes a selfish choice 
to please himself instead of obeying and pleas¬ 
ing God, and pitches his tent towards the 
world, whether it be in worldly gain or pleas¬ 
ure. It is not long after he departs from the 
commands and the approval of Christ, and 
leaves Him, “the fountain of living waters, and 
hews out cisterns that can hold no waterthat 
he finds himself a prisoner, taken captive by 
Satan under the old yoke of sinful habits, or 
plunged into new and deeper depths of sin and 
wicked living. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “Then such Chris¬ 
tians are in darkness and live devoid of peace. 
Their joy and usefulness as Christians are all 
drie<l up, and they find that the way of the 
transgressor is hard, and that whom the Father 
loves He chastens, and that no chastening for 
the present is joyous but grievous.” 


High Calling in Christ. 


167 


Those who depart from the Lord are “like 
the heath of the desert, and shall not see when 
good cometh; but shall inherit the parched 
places in the wilderness, in a salt land and 
not inhabited.” While, “Blessed is the man 
that trusteth in the Lord, whose hope the 
Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by 
the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots 
by the river, and shall not see when the heat 
cometh, but her leaf is green; and shall not be 
careful in the time of drouth, neither shall 
cease from bearing fruit.” Too many Chris¬ 
tians go into sin and seek their happiness in 
the things of this world away from God, and 
find that they have left the fountain of living 
waters, and that their own cisterns are broken 
and they live unhappy, unblessed and useless 
Christian lives. While those who abide in 
Christ and obey His commands and make Him 
their trust, are like the tree planted by the 
waters, with her roots by the river, and know 
not when the heat and drouth of doubt, dark¬ 
ness, unbelief and sorrow come to the unbeliev¬ 
ing and disobedient ones. They have the 
scources of their life, and their supplies of sup¬ 
port and happiness in the infinite and eternal 
God. They are in Christ by the new birth and 
draw from His infinite fullness all they need. 
From Him they obtain grace to cover all their 
sins and meet all their needs. 


168 The New Life in Christ. 

Charles Warner: “Is it not strange that 
any one who has tasted that the Lord is good, 
and has realized the sweets of pardon, should 
consent to neglect his Christian duty and go 
into sin, and leave the sources of his gracious 
supplies? Why a young Christian should give 
up going to church and turn to sin and vice for 
pleasure is more than I can explain. I purpose 
to abide in Christ, and I want to draw from 
Him all my supplies.” 

There is no necessity for Christians to go 
back to the world for happiness. By continu¬ 
ing in the Lord’s words they shall know the 
truth and the truth will make them free; and 
by abiding in Christ and in His love they shall 
enjoy the conscious love of the Father as well 
as that of Christ; and shall have their indwell¬ 
ing presence. By faith and obedience the Chris¬ 
tian lives in Christ, and is full of joy, peace, 
and fruitfulness in His service; while the diso¬ 
bedient and unbelieving are full of cares, wor¬ 
ries, darkness and failures all the time. Their 
Christian joys are dried up, their souls are 
thirsty, and their lives are failures because 
they have departed from their obedience, and 
their dependence upon the presence and 
strength of God. But it is so much better to be 
obedient to God, walk in His ways and be 
blessed of Him. 


High Calling in Christ. 


169 


Neil Johnson : “It has been a matter of 
constant wonder to me that Israel of old 
should forsake the Lord after He took them 
out of bondage and planted them in their own 
land, and gave them so many and such great 
blessings. That they should turn away from 
the pure, loving worship and service of the 
true and living God, is a matter of perpetual 
wonder to me!” 

It is strange indeed that men in their right 
minds should do such a thing; but it is even 
more wonderful to me that new creatures 
should turn away from the pure, spiritual 
worship and service of Christ, who loved them 
and died for them, delivered them from eternal 
ruin, made them new creatures, and filled their 
hearts with the joys of salvation and the bless¬ 
ed hope of heaven—that these should ever turn 
away from the service of Christ is stranger 
than any of the wonders in life! How can a 
Christian ever consent to turn away from the 
service of Christ, and from the pure fountain 
of Christian joys, from obedience to His words, 
and go for pleasure and profit to drink at the 
broken cisterns of worldly, fleshly, sinful 
pleasures? No wonder such an one is dried up 
and withered as the heath of the desert, and 
does not know when good comes. 


170 


The New Life in Christ. 


Will Harrison : “Christians ought all to 
be in a hurry to give up every evil thing; and 
repent and turn to God whenever they find 
their souls clouded, and their spiritual life 
and joys growing weak.” 

They ought to detect the first approach of 
coldness or darkness, and turn from the wrong, 
and see that they live in close union and com¬ 
munion with the Lord. 

A young convert was troubled, and feared that 
she was not a new creature because she found 
it so easy to do wrong, and hard always to do 
right. I told her, she knew how she found 
peace at first, and she might find it in the same 
way all the time. She said that she did love 
and trust Christ as her Savior, and was surely 
troubled to find it so easy to do wrong. She 
had thought it would be hard, if not impossi¬ 
ble, for a Christian to do wrong. 

Will Harrison : “All young Christians 
seem to have some such erroneous ideas about 
the Christian life. Some think dhristians do 
not find any pleasure in sin, and think if new 
creatures, they will never want to dance, nor 
do any evil things any more; and because they 
are drawn into these things again, suppose that 
they are not Christians and are unsaved.” 


High Calling in Christ . 


171 


This is especially true of those who depend 
in some measure upon their works for salva¬ 
tion ; but they all need to be taught the way of 
the Lord more clearly. Paul, whom I think 
was one of the best men who ever lived, tells 
us, “that which I do I allow not; for what I 
would, I do not; but what I hate, that I do.” 
“For the good that I would I do not; but the 
evil that I hate, that I do.” “O wretched man 
that I am! who shall deliver me from the 
body of this death? I thank God through 
Jesus Christ our Lord!” We are justfled by 
faith in Christ, and there' is no condemnation 
to those who are in Christ, because He died 
for them and rose again. 

Miss Mary Long : “You surely do not think 
that this was Paul’s experience after he was 
a Christian? I have heard it said by so many 
that this was his unconverted experience, and 
that a converted person could not feel and act 
as he did.” 

An unregenerated person could truthfully 
say: “I consent to the law that it is good,” “I 
delight in the law of God,” “with the mind I 
serve the law of God;” and there are no true 
Christians who do not know more or less of 
this conflict within them between the “flesh” 


172 


The New Life in Christ. 


and the “spirit,” the “old man” and the “new.” 
None are entirely free from the influence of 
fleshly desires and affections, and no Christian 
ever does all the good he wishes to do, but he 
does much of the evil he wishes not to do, and 
which he really hates. Yet with Paul we 
thank God for full and complete deliverance 
through Jesus Christ our Lord; because He is 
our full and complete Savior from sin. He 
frees believers from all its power to condemn 
and ruin them, from its love and rule, is sancti¬ 
fying them from its influence and making them 
like Christ; and He will finally make them 
perfect. When we wake in His likeness, we 
shall see Him as He is, and we shall be like 
Him, and be satisfied. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I have no question 
at all that new creatures can go back to their 
old sins, and even lose sight of the fact that 
they have been forgiven; but how to get the 
full victory through our Lord Jesus Christ is 
what I want to know.” 

In a revival meeting one of my members was 
waked up to see how far she had been living 
from Christ, and determined to return to obe¬ 
dience and faithful service of the Lord. She 
determined to give up all sin and disobedience, 
and try to do her duty in all things. She had 


High Calling in Christ. 


173 


lived a worldly, disobedient life so long, that 
it was hard to give it up. Her Bible had long 
been neglected as a dry, dull book; while she 
had given her attention to the reading of light 
literature during all the lonely years of her 
widowhood. By earnest prayer she obtained 
the victory over this and other evil habits, 
and began to read her Bible as a hungry child 
eats its food. She gathered her children 
around her and told them of her renewed pur¬ 
pose to serve the Lord, and obey Him in all 
things, and read the Bible and prayed with 
them. Through her influence they began to 
turn to the Lord; and in the church and Sun¬ 
day school her influence was felt as a power 
of great and lasting good. 

Up till this time she had been a positive hin¬ 
drance, and not a help to Christianity. Her 
home had been worldly and ungodly; and she 
had seldom attended church, and when she had 
gone, it was to find fault and criticise. Her 
influence had been with the world, and against 
Christ. But when she returned, and lived in 
Christ, and obeyed His commands, she be¬ 
came one of the most spiritually minded mem¬ 
bers in the church, and was by far the best 
teacher in the Sunday school, and was instru¬ 
mental in leading many to Christ. 

Lee Wallace: “When we depart from the 
service of Christ and go into sin, the only way 


174 


The New Life in Christ . 


to get back the joys of salvation is to confess 
and forsake our sin, and pray for forgiveness 
through the loving kindness and tender mer¬ 
cies of God in Christ. We need also to pray 
for the quickening and comforting presence 
of the Holy Spirit. God alone can restore to 
us the joys of salvation.” 

We ought to live in the purpose to give up 
all known sin; because sin dries up our joys 
and usefulness, and hinders the higher devel¬ 
opment of the new life. By faith in Christ, 
and obedience to His commands, we obtain 
fellowship with the Father and His Son Jesus 
Christ; and by faith and obedience we are to 
retain our peace* joy, Christian happiness and 
nearness to God. Sin and the neglect to read 
and obey the Bible, and to use the means of 
grace, holds us back from growth in spiritual¬ 
ity, usefulness, and nearness to God. 

Neil Johnson: “Many make a mistake as 
to repentance and faith, thinking that they 
are like the new birth, once for all. TMs 
opinion often is the cause of much hindrance 
in the new life.” 

Repentance is not the one act of giving up 
sin at the beginning of the Christian life, nor 
is faith the one act of accepting Christ once for 


High Calling in Christ. 


175 


all; but faith is dependence upon Christ all 
the time for all we need, and repentance is the 
giving up of sin all through life. The expe¬ 
riences at the beginning of the Christian life 
are to continue in the giving up of all sin, 
and trusting Christ for life, strength and 
salvation. In this way alone w T e may make 
progress in the new life, as we make progress 
in the knowledge and obedience of the Bible. 

Will Harrison: “We sometimes lose sight 
of the difference between the righteousness 
o.f Christ imputed to us, and the righteous¬ 
ness imparted to us by the Holy Spirit.” 

By the imputed righteousness of Christ we 
are justified, and by it in Christ we are right¬ 
eous as He is righteous. The Holy Spirit is 
continuing the work in our lives which He 
began when He made us new creatures; and 
we should yield ourselves up to be fashioned 
by Him. 

Obedience by faith in Christ is the one thing 
before us in the new life. Without faith it is 
impossible to please God, be justified, saved, 
bear fruit, or do anything. The just shall live 
by faith, be justified by faith, walk by faith, 
overcome by faith, have the victory by faith, 
and are saved through faith. Let us con¬ 
stantly look to Christ who is the author and 


176 


The New Life in Christ. 


finisher of our faith; and by faith and obe¬ 
dience live close to and daily become more like 
Him. 


LESSON XV. 


ALL SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS IN CHRIST. 

LESSED be the God and Father of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed 
us with all spiritual blessings in 
heavenly places in Christ;’’ “according 
to the riches of His grace.”—Eph. 1:3, 7. 

God has given us all spiritual blessings in 
Christ. “He hath chosen us in Him before 
the foundation of the world, that we should 
be holy and without blame before Him in 
love. Having predestinated us unto the adop¬ 
tion of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, 
according to the good pleasure of His will, to 
the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein 
He hath made us accepted in the beloved: in 
whom we have redemption through His blood, 
the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches 
of His grace.” “That we should be to the 
praise of His glory.” 

Some of these blessings He says are, that we 
are chosen in Christ, to be holy and without 
blame; predestinated to the adoption of chil- 

177 



12 


178 


The New Life in Christ. 


dren by Christ; made us accepted in Christ; 
and in Christ we have redemption through 
His blood, the forgiveness of sins according 
to the riches of His grace; that we shall be to 
the praise of Hfs glory. 

Miss }Jary Long : “I have thought that our 
becoming Christians depends entirely upon 
our choosing to do so. ‘Mary hath chosen 
that good part/ ‘choose ye this day whom ye 
will serve/ and they ‘chose not to retain God 
in their thoughts/ ” 

It is mentioned here as one of the spiritual 
blessings in Christ, that “He hath chosen us in 
Him,” that We should be holy and without 
blame; and the time, was “before the foun¬ 
dation of the world.” Jesus said, “ye have 
not chosen Me, but I have chosen you.” “God 
hath from the beginning chosen you to salva¬ 
tion.” True that Mary, already a Christian, 
chose that good part of sitting at Jesus’ feet 
and learning of Him, while her sister was 
troubled about much serving in order to pre¬ 
pare a good feast for her Lord. The other 
cases are of the same character. 

Miss Mary Long: “I have been led to be¬ 
lieve that the doctrine of election and predes¬ 
tination misrepresented the character of 


All Spiritual Blessings in Christ . 179 

God, and is a dangerous doctrine for people 
to believe.” 

These are not the true questions for us to 
ask; but does the word of God teach it? If 
it does, then we must accept and believe it is 
true, no matter what the seeming results. 
But this doctrine simply represents God as 
sovereign, and not man; and it leads men, who 
believe it, to praise and honor God as sover¬ 
eign in their salvation. We are to believe 
the Bible, and trust the results with the in¬ 
finite wisdom of God. He says that it re¬ 
sults “to the praise of the glory of His grace.” 

Neil Johnson: “He says that His election 
and predestination, result in making new 
creatures holy and without blame, adopted in¬ 
to God’s family, acceptable to God in Christ, 
redeemed by His blood, and forgiven of all 
their sins according to the riches of His 
grace. I can not find it in me to call these 
results at all dangerous.” 

Will Harrison : “ ‘Who hath blessed us 

with all spiritual blessing in heavenly places 
in Christ,’ ‘In whom we have redemption, 
through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, ac¬ 
cording to the riches of His grace.’ It seems 
to me that all who are in Christ have in Him 


180 


The Netv Life in Christ. 


redemption, forgiveness of sins, and all spirit- 
ual blessings, whether they fully realize them 
or not. How are we redeemed by His blood?” 

Redeem is to buy back. All by nature and 
practice are sinners. They are corrupt in na¬ 
ture and practice, have violated God’s holy 
law times without number, and are under 
its condemnation. They are totally unable 
to change their natures, relieve themselves 
from under the condemnation of the law, or 
bring themselves into favor with God. But 
Christ became man, obeyed the law for us, 
suffered for the guilt of our sins, and with 
His sinless life-blood paid our debt, and 
brought us from under condemnation and 
death. Christ is the end of the law for right¬ 
eousness to every one that believes; in so 
much that all who believe in Him, are not 
under the law, but under grace. The benefits 
of the obedience of Christ and the merits of 
His sufferings and death are put to the believ¬ 
er’s account, and they are regarded and treated 
in Him as though the benefits and merits were 
all their own. They have redemption and 
forgiveness of sins in Christ when they be¬ 
lieve in Him. 

Neil Johnson : “Believers have these 
blessings in Christ; but do not always so live 


All Spiritual Blessings in Christ. 181 

and believe the Word of God as to realize 
all they really have in Christ.’’ 

Very few seem to live up to the full extent 
of their privileges in Christ, and very few seem 
to realize and enjoy all their privileges and 
blessings in Him. It is said that a farmer 
lived upon an old, poor hill for many years in 
poverty, and by hard work managed to secure 
a bare support for himself and family; but 
when the old hill farm came to his son, he dis¬ 
covered that it contained valuable -ore. Where 
the father had hardly realized a support, the 
son realized hundreds of thousands of dollars. 
The father owned all the wealth which the son 
possessed and enjoyed, but he did not realize 
it. God hath blessed us with all spiritual 
blessings in Christ, in whom we have redemp¬ 
tion and the forgiveness of sin. We often fail 
to realize the fullness of these blessings, be¬ 
cause we do not use the appointed means in 
order to realize them. “If we confess our sins, 
He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.” 
“If any man sin, we have an advocate with the 
Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and He is 
the propitiation for our sins.” “If we walk in 
the light, as He is in the light, we have fellow¬ 
ship one with another, and the blood of Jesus 
Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 


182 


The New Life in Christ. 


Will Harrison : “After one has been saved, 
as a new creature, nearly all the blessings of 
God seem to depend upon stated conditions, 
and all who would enjoy the blessings must 
believe in Christ to be saved, keep His com¬ 
mandments if we would abide in His love, 
abide in Christ and have His words abide in 
us, if we would have our prayers heard and 
answered; and all the rewards are to be ob¬ 
tained by doing what is required by the Lord.” 

“Well done, good and faithful servant; thou 
hast been faithful over a few things, I will 
make thee ruler over many: enter thou into 
the joy of thy Lord.” Our rewards are not to 
be determined so much by the number of our 
talents as by our faithfulness in obedience to 
the commands of our Lord. “Blessed are they 
that do His commandments, that they may 
have right to the tree of life, and may enter 
in through the gates into the city.” “If ye 
know these things, happy are ye, if ye do them.” 
As new creatures, we are to seek to know 
what the Lord savs in His word, and faithfully 
keep all His commands. But we should be care¬ 
ful not to lose sight of the fact that we have 
all these mercies in Christ, and not one of 
them outside or away from Him. Those who 
do what He says are happy in their doing, 
both for time and eternity. 


All Spiritual Blessings in Christ . 183 

Miss Hattie Warner: “How do we obtain 
the forgiveness of our sins through Christ? I 
have never yet felt just right about my way of 
living through the last few years of my pro¬ 
fessed Christian life. I feel that I have given 
up all the sins of the past, and am willing to 
give myself wholly to the Lord; and I am 
trusting in Christ alone for life and salvation. 
Sometimes my life is bright and joyous; but 
at other times I am in darkness, and feel too 
unworthy to even be called by His holy name.” 

“If any man sin, we have an advocate with 
the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: and He 
is the satisfaction for our sins.” Through 
Christ “is preached unto you the forgiveness 
of sins: and by Him all who believe are justi¬ 
fied from all things.” All who believe that 
Christ is the Son of God, and died for our 
sins, and trust Him for life and salvation, are 
justified from all things. This includes the for¬ 
giveness of sins to all who believe in Christ. 
Faith unites the believer to Christ, and makes 
him one with Christ; and “ye are complete in 
Him.” Through the merit of His atoning blood, 
all guilt is washed away, and God remembers 
their sins against them no more when the sin¬ 
ners believe in Christ, and are accepted in Him. 
It is an eternal forgiveness, as well as an eter¬ 
nal justification. “There is therefore now no 


184 


The New Life in Christ. 


condemnation to them who are in Christ;’’ 
‘‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth 
my word, and believeth on Him that sent me, 
hath everlasting life, and shall not come into 
condemnation; but is passed from death unto 
life.” All who hear and believe the gospel, 
and believe the witness of the Father concern¬ 
ing His Son, have eternal life, and shall never 
perish. “And this is the record, that God hath 
given to us eternal life, and this life is in His 
Son: he that hath the Son hath life.” “There¬ 
fore if any man be in Christ he is a new creat¬ 
ure; old things are passed away; behold all 
things are become new.” Believers need to con¬ 
fess and forsake their sins, trust in Christ as 
their Savior; and believe God when He says: 
“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou 
shalt be saved;” “and by Him all who believe 
are justified from all things.” Accept His 
words, and trusting in Christ, look to Him and 
rejoice in His full salvation by grace through 
faith in Christ. 

Will Harrison: “When I think of my own 
great unworthiness, I am helped by remem¬ 
bering that my salvation rests upon the ex¬ 
ceeding riches of the grace of God in Christ. 
Our forgiveness, justification, and full salva¬ 
tion are limited only by His riches of grace, 
and as they are infinite, then these spiritual 


All Spiritual Blessings in Christ. 185 

blessings are infinite. Surely such grace is 
sufficient for us and all of our deepest needs!” 

“He hath made us accepted in the Beloved; 
in whom we have redemption through His 
blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the 
riches of His grace.” We are accepted in 
Christ, and through His righteousness we are 
forgiven and justified and have peace with 
God and eternal life. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I do believe God’s 
word, and I am trusting Christ as my Savior; 
but I have so few bright hours; I am constant, 
ly singing: 

“ ‘O drive these dark clouds from my sky; 

Thy soul-cheering presence restore:’ and 

I wonder, Why are my winters so long?’ 

“I think now that I could be perfectly happy, 
if I could only realize that I am accepted in 
Christ, and that He is with me, and that I 
am living in Him. I can say from my heart: 

“ ‘Lord I desire with thee to live 
Anew from day to day, 

In joys the world can never give, 

Nor ever take away.’ 


186 


The New Life in Christ . 


“My constant prayer is, ‘Restore unto me the 
joys of thy salvation, and uphold me by thy 
free Spirit/ ” 

He says to you: “Return unto Me and I will 
return unto you;” and if we seek, we shall find. 
When we get close to Him, we find plenty of 
light. David thirsted for -God as in a land of 
drought; and was willing to take the humblest 
place in the house of God, rather than to dwell 
in the tents of wickedness forever. But remem¬ 
ber that in Christ you have been made accepta¬ 
ble to God, through His merits, and are adopt¬ 
ed into the family of God by Christ, and shall 
be made holy and without blame before Him 
in love, and have all spiritual blessings in 
Christ, according to the riches of His grace. 
Do you believe this? “Believing, we rejoice 
to see the curse removed/’ Belief of His word, 
faith in Him, and obedience to His commands 
secure His presence, and the Father’s also. 

“His presence disperses my gloom, 

And makes all within me rejoice.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I can not forget 
that Jesus says, ‘No man, having put his hand 
to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the 
kingdom of God;’ and ‘whosoever he be of you 


All Spiritual Blessings in Christ. 187 

that forsaketh not all that he hath, he can not 
be my disciple/ I did look back, and did not 
forsake all and follow Christ wholly. If I 
know my own heart I am willing to give up 
everything that stands in the way of obedience 
to my Lord’s commands.” 

In obedience to Christ’s commands we will 
find all the blessings of grace and salvation. 
In following Christ we need the abiding prin¬ 
ciple of love to Him, and not mere impulse; 
for it requires resolution and firm decision 
to enable a Christian to forsake all and fol¬ 
low Christ. These are the only ones who are fit 
to work and serve the Lord here, and be 
His true and happy disciples. Hundreds of 
experiences prove that no professor can be a 
true, useful and happy Christian without giv¬ 
ing up all and following Christ wholly. But 
be careful that you do not turn your trust 
away from Christ and look to your obedience 
or works for peace and salvation. We are 
blessed with all spiritual blessings in Christ. 

Neil Johnson: “If we are new creatures, 
we have been chosen in Christ; that we should 
be wholly and without blame before God in 
love, predestinated to the adoption of children 
by Christ, and made accepted in Him; and 
having been redeemed by His blood, we have 


188 


The New Life in Christ. 


the forgiveness of all our sins according to 
the riches of His grace. Now if God has bless¬ 
ed us with all spiritual blessings in Christ, 
and we are in Him; why may not our joy and 
peace be full in Him?” 

“The just shall live by faith;” and we walk 
by faith and not by sight. “He that spared 
not His own Son, but delivered Him up for 
us all, how shall He not with Him also freely 
give us all things?” The riches of grace which 
led the Father to give His Son for us, and then 
did not withhold from Him the sufferings for 
our sins, the same love will lead Him to give 
all other blessings we need. Let us abide in 
Christ and study to know, believe, and obey 
His words, so that having such sweet fellow¬ 
ship with Him we may realize His presence 
all the time, and have Him answer our pray¬ 
ers. In Christ w r e are blessed with all w r e can 
possibly need, having the forgiveness of our 
sins, and liberty by the blood of Jesus to en¬ 
ter into the holiest: “Let us draw near with a 
true heart in full assurance of faith, having 
our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, 
and our bodies washed with pure water. Let 
us hold fast the profession of our faith with¬ 
out wavering; for He is faithful that prom¬ 
ised.” Let us never forget that, “we are sanc¬ 
tified through the offering of the body of Jesus 


All Spiritual Blessings in Christ. 189 

Christ once for all,” and that Christ, after He 
had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, 
“sat down on the right hand of God.” “For by 
one offering He hath perfected forever them 
that are sanctified.” “I will put my laws into 
their hearts, and in their minds will I write 
them; and their sins and iniquities will I re¬ 
member no more.” This is the basis of our 
confidence in God, and our hope is sure. Let us 
never look away from Christ as the source of 
all our blessings. 


LESSON XVI. 


ENRICHED TO ALL BOUNTIFULNESS. 

C iOD is able to make all grace abound to¬ 
wards you; that ye, always having all 
sufficiency in all things, may abound 
to every good work.” 

“Being enriched in everything to all boun¬ 
tifulness.”—2 Cor. 9:11, 8. 

“Whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”— 
Psalm 1:3. 

“Till we all come in the unity of the faith, 
and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto 
a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature 
of the fullness of Christ.”—Eph. 4 :13. 

Many Christians come very far short 
of their possibilities in Christ. As God has 
given all spiritual blessings in Christ, so He 
is able to make all grace abound unto us till 
we are enriched in everything to all bounti¬ 
fulness; so that we may abound in every good 
work. 

190 



Enriched to all Bountifulness. 191 

Miss Mary Long: “I am astonished to see 
how fully everything is supplied to us in 
Christ. Truly of His fullness have all we re¬ 
ceived! and we may receive, if we have not, 
by meeting the conditions upon which these 
great blessings may be enjoyed. But who can 
tell how much loss we all suffer now and may 
suffer at last, because we fail to meet the con¬ 
ditions?” 

It is the prayer of the righteous man that f 
avails much; and only those who abide in 
Christ and have His words abide in them may 
ask what they will, and it shall be done unto 
them. So they who continue in the words of 
Christ shall know the truth, and be made 
free. All who believe in Christ are «aved by 
grace; and all the saved who faithfully obey 
Christ’s commands, as taught in His word, will 
be blessed now and in the world to come. 
While all who fail to do these things suffer loss. 
These things are proved by the experiences 
of all the Lord’s children every day. 

Will Harrison: “Much of my past Chris^ 
tian life has been short of what I thought it 
would be. I have not reached the degree of 
success in my efforts to serve God, live true 
and right as I think I ought to have done. I 
have not succeeded in my efforts to do my duty, 


192 


The New Life in Christ. 


and help and bless others as I wished; and 
in many things I have attempted to do I have 
seemed not to prosper. I began to search my 
life in the light of the Bible to see where the 
cause of my failures lay. 

“I had committed much of the Bible to mem¬ 
ory, and now I determined to commit it to 
practice. I had my memory verses, and also 
my special practice verses on everything 
where I needed special help. I purposed to 
do all things whatsoever the Lord says do in 
the Bible. I studied to receive the word into 
my mind and heart, to understand, believe, 
and obey it; and let it bear fruit in my life. 

"I read, ‘Whatsoever he doeth shall pros¬ 
per,’ and found that it was the man who walked 
not in the council of the ungodly, nor stood in 
the way of sinners, nor sat in the seat of the 
scornful; but he delights in the law of the 
Lord, and meditates in it day and night. ‘He 
shall be like a tree planted by the river of 
waters, he shall bring forth his fruit in season, 
his leaf also shall not wither, and whatso¬ 
ever he doeth shall prosper.’ I studied to know 
the conditions of this prosperity in all things; 
and determined faithfully to try to meet them. 
I wanted to be, as the tree planted by the 
river of waters, unwithered, fruitful, and 
prospering in all I undertook. 


Enriched to all Bountifulness. 193 


“I could see no reason why with God’s ap¬ 
proval, guidance, and support, it might not be 
true. So I read and studied closely the first 
and second verses, of the First Psalm, to see 
plainly the conditions of this success; and I 
tried to put every part of into practice, faith¬ 
fully avoiding the wrongs of sinners, loving 
and meditating in the word of God day and 
night. I tried to know all the Lord says, and 
to do all He commands. I can say, that from 
that time my life has grown brighter, and my 
success more complete.” 

Burt Norman : “I have had some financial 
troubles of late, and have thought that there 
must be something wrong towards the Lord 
in my system, or that the dear Lord wanted 
me to do more in His service with my money 
than I had yet done. So I determined to 
study my Bible, with earnest prayer, to see 
if I could find the cause of my trouble and 
remove it. 

“I found that He commands: ‘Upon the first 
day of the week, let every one of you lay by him 
in store, as God hath prospered him.* I had 
never done that, and so I felt that I had found 
my wrong. I was not obeying God with my 
money. I determined to begin at once to obey 
Him in this; but when I began to take out 

13 


194 


The New Life in Christ. 


His part of my week’s income, I said, ‘How 
much Lord, will you have me lay by?’ 

“I went to the Bible for the answer, and I 
read: ‘He that soweth sparingly, shall reap 
also sparingly; and he which soweth bounti¬ 
fully shall reap also bountifully. Every man 
according as he purposes in his heart, so let 
him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity; for 
God loves a cheerful giver. And God "is able 
to make all grace abound towards you; that 
ye, always having all sufficiency in all things 
may abound unto every good work.’ 

“I found in this Scripture that the amounts 
we give determine the results we receive; as a 
liberal sowing must preceed a liberal reaping, 
so liberal giving preceeds our liberal receiving 
of the Lord, who is able to make all grace 
abound unto us, so that we may always have 
all sufficiency in all things, that we may be 
able to abound unto every good work, and be 
enriched in everything to all bountifulness. 
Also that, ‘God loves a cheerful giver/ 

“In view of these things, He says: ‘Every 
man according as he purposeth in his heart, 
so let him give/ I determined that my giving 
should be cheerful and bountiful; but I was 
yet unable to determine what per cent, of my 
weekly income I ought to give to God. I was 
rather pressed by some financial losses, and 
the suggestion came that perhaps I had better 


Enriched to all Bountifulness. 


195 


give less for a time; but I read, ‘He that soweth 
sparingly, shall also reap sparingly;’ and, 
‘God is able to make all grace abound towards 
you, that ye always having all sufficiency in 
all things, may abound unto every good work.’ 
So putting that temptation away, I said, ‘I 
believe that God is able to do this thing, and 
trusting Him, I will meet the condition of this 
blessing.’ 

“I found nothing in the New Testament to 
determine the amount I should put aside on 
the first day of the week for the Lord; but I 
read in Malachi: ‘Bring ye all the tithes into 
the store house, that there may be meat in my 
house, and prove me herewith, saith the Lord 
of hosts, if I will not open you the windows 
of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that 
there shall not be room enough to receive it.’ 
So I purposed to put aside the tenth of my 
real income on the first day of the week, and 
would give it willingly and gladly to the 
Lord’s cause; and I would give as much more 
as I should find myself led by the Spirit to 
give. So I purposed to give this amount of my 
income every week and went immediately to 
doing it.” 

Charles Warner: “How has the plan been 
working? But I can not doubt the results; 
for I know the Lord will be as good as His 


196 


The New Life in Christ. 


word. I wish I had jour present outlook for 
success in business.” 

Burt continued: “I began to feel better, 
mj faith grew stronger, and I found that God 
was fully able to supply all my needs. Trove 
me, and see if I will not open you the windows 
of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, there 
will not be room enough to receive it.’ I said, 
‘Lord, I do not know if this promise applies 
to us to-day; but it does apply to us, to reap 
liberally when' we sow liberally. Be pleased 
to let me reap liberally enough to meet my 
present needs, and to find relief from my pres¬ 
ent embarrassments.’ I found pleasure in 
trusting the Lord, and doing just what He 
commands as to our finances.” 

Neil Johnson: “The tenth was a Jewish* 
law, and you say you found nothing in the 
New Testament to warrant you in giving that 
amount; how then do you feel so well satis¬ 
fied with your plan? May it not be that you 
are entangling yourself again in the yoke of 
Jewish bondage?” 

Burt answered, “It may be so; but I think 
not. Lay by in store on the first day of the 
week, as the Lord has prospered you, is Chris¬ 
tian duty; and everyone is to purpose in his 


Enriched to all Bountifulness. 


197 


heart, and then carry out his purpose. This 
I did purpose, and am doing it as a preference, 
a real pleasure, and I find no kind of bondage 
in it; for I often find myself able and glad to 
go beyond my voluntary purpose, but never 
below it. I can trust the Lord to open the 
windows of heaven, and make all grace abound 
towards me, so that there will not be room 
enough to receive the all bountifulness of His 
sufficiency; that I being enriched in everything 
may abound in every good work.” 

Will Harrison : “I am so much pleased 
with your experience in this matter that I 
found myself forming the same purpose while 
you told of yours. I intend beginning to-day 
to lay by the tenth of my income for the Lord; 
and more as I feel able, and led by the Spirit 
to do. I do so delight to know and live the 
Bible in all things, and put to the test all 
that it says do. ‘Whether therefore ye eat, or 
drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory 
of God;’ and ‘whatsoever ye do in word or 
deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, 
giving thanks to God and the Father by Him.’ ” 

In all these things, and in all duties, we 
must draw grace, help and strength from 
Christ to enable us to do His will. Without 
Christ we can do nothing; but His grace is 


198 


The New Lifedn Christ. 


sufficient, and His strength is made perfect In 
our weakness. 

Neil Johnson: “I have felt that there is 
plenty in the Bible, commanded by the Lord, 
to keep the saved busy during all their lives. 
I like this plan of finding out what the Lord 
says about everything in life, and then obey¬ 
ing His commands in it. I believe that the 
Bible tells us what the Lord wants us to do in 
every condition in life, and that we ought to 
study to know what and how He wants us to 
do, and then do it. I like that laying by in 
store on the first day of the week, and avoiding 
the thoughts and ways of the wicked, and study¬ 
ing the word of God day and night to know 
and do His will; and eating, drinking and do¬ 
ing all we do to the glory of God. I made up 
my mind when I gave myself to God, and gave 
up all for Him that I would study to know 
just what the Lord says in the Bible, and hon¬ 
estly and faithfully try by His grace to do 
just that.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I made up my 
mind in a general sort of way to do right in 
everything; but did not even think of study¬ 
ing the Bible to see what God says is right, 
that I might know and do the Lord’s will in 
all things. I have seen my mistake, and I am 


Enriched to all Bountifulness. 


199 


not depending upon what I think, or how I 
feel about things; but I ask, what does God 
say about it ? Once I was satisfied to do things 
when I could see no harm in them; but I no 
longer make my views of right and wrong my 
standard. The Word of God, or what does the 
Lord say? is my rule of action. I am glad to 
find out His will in everything, and asking 
help, I am lovingly and faithfully trying to 
do it.” 

Mack Norman : “I find that by the grace 
and help of God through Christ, we may do all 
things. We may put off the old man with his 
deeds, and put on the new man, and let Christ 
and his words dwell in our hearts richly; and 
abiding in Christ bear much fruit and build 
ourselves up in our most holy faith, and keep 
ourselves in the love of God. I find 
myself ready and glad to know and obey all 
that Jesus says do; and it is a joy to know 
believe and do all the Lord says.” 

Lee Wallace: “It is strong proof that we 
are new creatures in Christ when we see the 
old things of our unsaved lives have passed 
and all things become new. Living the Bible, 
or doing all the Lord says do, makes our lives 
entirely new.” 


200 


The New Life in Christ. 


The lives we live by faith in Christ, believing 
and obeying the Bible, are new lives in Christ, 
and they are daily renewed by the Holy Spirit, 
who is not only leading us into the knowledge 
of the truth, but forming us into the likeness 
of our Savior. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “Is there not some 
way to save young Christians from going back 
to their old lives? It seems to me, if I had be¬ 
longed to your Bible Class when I first came 
into the church, that I would never have gone 
back to my old life as I did; and if I had never 
belonged to it, I cannot tell when I should 
have been freed from my old life of disobedi¬ 
ence. What does the Lord say about helping 
young converts?” 

He says, baptize them, and “teaching them 
to observe all things whatsoever I have com¬ 
manded you.” All who are baptized are to be 
taught to do all things commanded by Christ. 
Teach them to do what the Lord says do. It 
is well to begin with love: “If ye love me, keep 
my commandments.” Teach them that Christ 
wants us to show our love to Him by studying 
His Word to know all He says, and by doing 
it. Teach them to love one another, to deny 
themselves, bear their cross and follow Christ. 


Enriched to all Bountifulness. 


201 


Teach them to be separate from sinners, to 
avoid the appearance of evil, to put off the old 
man, the flesh, with all its evil deeds, and be 
renewed in their minds, led by the Spirit, put 
on love, joy, peace and all the fruits of the 
Spirit. Teach them to set their affections on 
things above, to seek first the kingdom of God 
and His righteousness, and to flee the evils of 
the world, the flesh and the devil. Then teach 
them to let their lights shine, to be the salt of 
the earth and true witnesses for Christ, and 
to preach the Gospel to every creature. Teach 
them to abide in Christ, to live by Him and 
for Him. Yes, there is much to be done to 
help young Christians to true, pure and useful 
lives. We are to feed the lambs of the flock 
and supply the pure milk of the Word to the 
babes in Christ that they may grow thereby. 

Miss Hattie Warner: "If I could have been 
taught to do what Jesus says do, I might have 
escaped much darkness, and have been far on 
my way of happy knowledge, obedience and 
usefulness. I find that we are happy in doing 
the Lord’s commands, and all who are taught 
from the first what the Lord says, and are led 
to do all He has said do, will truly live happy 
and useful Christian lives, I wonder that more 
Christians are not engaged in teaching the 
Word of God to young Christians. My former 


202 


The New Life in Christ. 


teachers never seemed to regard the Bible as 
the pure Word of God, teaching us the waj of 
life and giving us the commands of Christ, 
which we are bound to believe and obey. 1 am 
truly thankful for your help.” 

It is truly my joy to teach others the Word 
of God, and to lead them to do all things that 
our Lord commands us to do; and it is a great 
happiness to see them receiving the truth and 
obeying the Lord. 

Lee Wallace : “No one will ever be able to 
to tell the amount of good done your first class, 
not only in leading them all to Christ; but by 
teaching them what Christ commands the 
young convert to do. My own. Christian life 
has been brightened and made happy and use¬ 
ful by it. I have often praised the Lord be¬ 
cause he put me in your hands for teaching 
when I was a young Christian; and I shall 
never get done praising Him for the help re¬ 
ceived from these last lessons. Eternity alone 
can tell the benefit conferred by them to me.” 

Neil Johnson: “By careful inquiry I find 
that not one of our old class has ever gone 
back to the world, nor to their old lives of sin; 
but they are all living useful Christian lives. 
I understand that the published notes of those 


Enriched to all Bountifulness. 


203 


talks have been the means of leading many 
others to Christ, and many more to obey His 
commands.” 

It is truly a great joy to see the fruits of our 
labor in the true, happy Christian lives of 
those whom we teach. “Ye are our epistles 
written in our hearts, known and read of all 
men.” I joy that you all stand firm and honor 
God. 


LESSON NVIL. 


COMPLETE IN CHRIST. 

N Him dwelleth all the fullness of the 
Godhead bodily: and ye are complete 
in Him, who is head over all princi¬ 
pality and pojver.”—Col. 2:9, 10. 

“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus 
the Lord, so walk ye in Him ”—Col. 2 :6. 

The Lord Jesus has dwelling in Him the full¬ 
ness of the Godhead bodily, really and not in 
shadow; and this divinity He united with hu¬ 
manity by taking upon Him our nature. He 
was made under the law, born in the flesh, and 
in the likeness of sinful flesh an offering for 
sin, condemned sin in the flesh, that the obe¬ 
dience of the law might be fulfilled in us, who 
walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 

Mack Norman : “How did God condemn sin 
in the flesfi by sending His own Son in the like¬ 
ness of sinful flesh? and how is the righteous- 
nes of the law fulfilled in us?” 

Jesus Christ being divine and perfectly in¬ 
nocent, took our place under the law, and be- 
204 



Complete in Christ . 


205 


came responsible for. our sins. In His own 
body He bore all the punishment of our guilt. 
Our sins were placed to His account, and He 
was treated as though He were the guilty one; 
and the merit of all He has done and suffered 
is put to the account of believers, and they 
are treated as though the acts were all their 
own. Their sins were condemned by Christ’s 
atoning death for them, and the demands of 
the law were fully met by Christ’s obedience 
and death for sinners; and they are complete 
in His righteousness, and not in their own. 

Christ is perfectly righteous and infinitely 
holy, and with His own pure, sinless blood 
He has satisfied justice for the guilt of our 
sins; and by giving His life for ours He has 
redeemed us from death; and by His resurrec¬ 
tion to life He has brought us into life with 
Him. He is the fountain of life; and we live 
by Him, and have eternal life in Him. In Him 
is the fullness of life, and all believers have the 
more abundant life in Him. 

Neil Johnson: “I can see how the right¬ 
eousness of Christ is imputed or put to the 
believer’s account, and he is made righteous in 
Christ as He is righteous, and is complete in 
Him. But how does the believer live by the 
life of Christ?” 


206 


The New Life in Christ . 


Believers died in Christ their Substitute to 
the penalty of sin, and in their new birth they 
died to the love and practice of sin; and they 
are risen with Christ to a new life. “For ye 
are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in 
God; and when Christ, who is our life shall 
appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in 
glory.” We derive our life from Him, as the 
branch from the vine, as the body from the 
head, and we shall live, because he lives. The 
Holy Spirit makes us new creatures because 
Jesus died for our sins; and by faith we are 
united to, or made one with Christ, and are 
justified through the perfect righteousness of 
Christ, and are completely freed from condem¬ 
nation and death. 

Will Harrison: “So many Christians fail 
to realize their completeness in Christ. I take 
it that this is the reason so many look to the 
merit of their own works, for salvation, and 
why others are weak and being entangled in 
bondage, while others are too weak to work 
for Christ and glorify the Father by bearing 
fruit.” 

Many sadly fail to realize the great riches of 
grace and the fullness of blessings we have in 
Christ. “Of his fullness have all we received, 


Complete in Christ. 


207 


and grace for grace.” Christ says, “All power 
is given unto me in heaven and in earth;” and 
“my strength is made perfect in your weak¬ 
ness.” By relying upon this divine power Paul 
was able to say, “When I am weak then am 
I strong.” By an earnest, loving trust and de¬ 
pendence upon Christ, and loving obedience to 
His words, we receive of His fulness of life, 
grace, righteousness, wisdom, strength and 
power to make us completely able to resist the 
temptations of Satan, overcome the world and 
do all the work the Lord has commanded us to 
do. “In whom are hid all the treasures of wis¬ 
dom and knowledge;” and we are to draw from 
these full stores by the belief of His Word, 
trust in Him and by prayer, faith and obedience 
to all He has commanded us to do. Not fol¬ 
lowing the opinions of men, nor the vain beliefs 
of unregenerated hearts, but by continuing in 
the words of Christ, know the truth and be 
made absolutely free by it. 

Charles Warner: “If your position is true, 
then all who are in Christ are most assuredly 
saved by Him. They are and will be complete¬ 
ly saved by faith in Him; and they live and 
work by being in Him and one with Him?” 

“Ye are complete in Him.” “For God hath 
given unto us eternal life, and this life is in 


208 


The New Life in Christ. 


the Son. He that hath the Son, hath life; and 
he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” 
Christians have eternal life as the gift of God, 
and they receive it by faith when they believe 
in Christ. It is in Christ, and to receive Christ 
is to receive eternal life, but to reject Christ is 
to reject eternal life. Many Christians fail to 
realize their privileges in Christ, and do not 
seem to know that they have eternal life, and 
fail to rejoice in the fact that they shall never 
come into condemnation. The Bible says, “Ye 
are saved by grace,” “God hath given unto 
you eternal life,” and “he that hath the Son 
hath life.” So God has already given them 
eternal life, and they have it, and they are 
already saved, and they should use and rejoice 
in all their completeness in Christ. 

When one has been born of the Spirit, the 
new spiritual life imparted to him is a part 
of the eternal life which he shall enjoy through 
all eternity. This life is in Christ, and all who 
receive Him as their Savior, and are accepted 
of God in Him, have eternal life, and shall not 
come into condemnation, because of the com¬ 
plete righteousness of Christ imputed to them. 

Neil Johnson: “Is there any difference in 
the degree of life expressed by the well of water 
springing up into eternal life ,and the rivers 
of living water flowing to others?” 


Complete in Christ. 


209 


Jesus said, “Whosoever drinketh. of the 
water that I shall give him shall never thirst; 
but the water that I shall give him shall be 
in him a well of water springing up into ever 
lasting life.” Also, “If any man thirst, let 
him come unto me and drink.” “He that be- 
lieveth on me, as the Scriptures hath said, from 
within him shall flow rivers of living water.” 
Both passages refer to the results of faith, and 
the results of being in Christ. The one refers 
to the experimental blessings enjoyed by be¬ 
lievers, and the other to the blessings which 
flow from their lives to others. This new life 
ever springing up in them, shall ever flow in 
living rivers to bless the world. 

Will Harrison: “In what way do Chris 
tians obtain their spirituality from Christ? 
So many of us are weak spiritually; and I 
earnestly desire to be more spiritually-minded 
than I am.” 

In Jesus is the fullness of the Holy Spirit, 
“for God giveth not the Spirit by measure 
unto Him;” and believers receive of Him 
from this fullness. “If any man have 
not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His;” for 
“of His fullness have all we received.” The 
Holy Spirit, who makes us new creatures, 
dwells in all believers’ hearts to lead them into 

14 


210 


The 'New Life in Christ. 


the truth, and to develop in them the fruits 
of the Spirit. He enabled them to put off the 
old man with his corrupt deeds, and to put on 
the new man. The works of the flesh with 
their defiling influences are to be put off by 
faith through the Spirit’s power, and the fruits 
of the Spirit, which are love, joy, peace and 
many others, are to be put on by the blessings 
of the Spirit. We have the Holy Spirit from 
Christ, and by means of His infinite grace, 
we are not to grieve the Spirit, nor resist Him, 
but to yield ourselves up to His leading and 
moulding power. 

There is no limit to Christ’s fullness. In¬ 
finite grace, power and blessings with all that 
we can possibly need are embodied in Him, and 
are subject to the use of every believer to draw 
upon as he has need. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “Why is it that all 
Christians do not know of Christ’s infinite full¬ 
ness, and that they are complete in Him? and 
so draw from His fullness that they may be 
useful and happy all the time, and never go 
back to the world for pleasure?” 

Many Christians fail to go on in their Chris¬ 
tian lives adding to their faith virtue, knowl¬ 
edge, temperance and the other graces of the 
Spirit; and they are weak and uninstructed be- 


Complete in Christ . 


211 


cause they do not walk in Christ as they re-' 
ceived Him. It is not because of the lack of 
resources; but because they fail to know the 
words of Christ, and to do all that He com¬ 
mands. 

Mack Norman : “What is meant by walk¬ 
ing in Christ as ye received Him?” 

I once preached as pastor of a church, whose 
young members lived very much as the other 
young people of the world lived. They en¬ 
gaged in dancing and other forms of worldli¬ 
ness with far more interest than they did in 
the services of their church. They were little 
interested in any of the works of the church, 
remained away from many of its meetings, and 
were little benefitted by any they attended. 
After some months, during a warm revival 
meeting, they began to seek for the restora¬ 
tion of the joys of salvation. I urged that they 
walk in Christ as they had received Him at 
first. 

When they first came to Christ they made a 
full surrender of every evil thing, and gave 
themselves wholly to Christ; and should live 
in the same way if they would retain The joys 
of salvation. They should continue to give up 
the world and worldly pleasures, and abide 
in Christ and in His service all the time as 


212 


The New Life in Christ. 


they did when they first gave themselves to 
Him. 

They believed Him to be the Son of God 
manifest in the flesh, that He died for onr 
sins, and could save to the uttermost all who 
trust in Him; and they received Him as their 
Savior, and trusted Him for life and salva¬ 
tion, and believed that they were fully saved 
by Him. They then enjoyed perfect peace with 
God and rejoiced in hope of eternal glory. 
Then they should live trusting Him as a perfect 
Savior, and rejoicing in His complete salva¬ 
tion. 

When they first came to Christ they were 
willing and glad to forsake all and follow Him, 
and they were glad to do all that He com¬ 
mands; and now that they had gone back to 
the world and to their sinful pleasures, they 
could not expect to live happy Christian lives 
in disobedience and sin. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “Did they ever have 
the joys of salvation restored? and walk in 
Christ as they had received Him?” 

One after another consented to give up all 
wrong and return to the same kind of Chris¬ 
tian life which they led during the first happy 
days of their early experience. As they re¬ 
turned to their first love, trust and obedience. 


Complete in Christ. 


213 


they also found their first joy, peace and use¬ 
fulness. They lived useful as well as happy 
lives, and were not only regularly at church, 
but frequently brought others with them; and 
they were the means of bringing not a few to 
Christ. 

Mack Norman : “It means much every way 
to walk in Christ. How few of us live in Him 
complete in His infinite fullness!” 

To walk in Christ means to live in Him. We 
live by His life as the branch lives by that of 
the vine, and the members by that of the body. 
He is our life, and because He lives we shall 
live also. Then it is clear that we ought to 
walk as He walked. Our lives should be sub¬ 
ject to His will and should be devoted to the 
things which He has commanded. 

Will Harrison: “When I first came to 
Christ I felt myself to be a poor, lost, helpless 
sinner, unable to save myself at all, and was 
willing and glad to give up all sin for time 
and eternity. I believed Christ to be the Son 
of God, and that He had died in the flesh for 
our sins, and is fully able to save all who trust 
in Him. I trusted Him to save me, depended 
upon His atoning death for forgiveness and 
life. I gave up all and looked to Him alone 


214 


The New Life in Christ . 


for salvation; and I was happy in Him as my 
Saviour and in His service. It has been my 
full purpose to live in Him as I did at first, 
and when I do thus live I have the same com¬ 
fort, joy and peace with God as I had at first. 
I have determined to try to know all that 
Jesus says do, and try to do it. For most of 
the time I have walked in Christ and realized 
much joy in Him and in His service. The more 
obedient, trusting and faithful I can be, the 
deeper Christian joy I experience. I cannot 
see how any real live Christian can consent to 
turn away from the fullness of joy in Christ 
to the pleasures of sin and the joys of the 
world.” 

All who have received Christ with His full¬ 
ness of blessing ought to walk in Him, and use 
the fullness of Christ to spread His kingdom 
in the world. They should not live their old 
lives of worldliness, but the obedient, loving 
lives of the saved. The infinite resources of 
grace and life in Christ should be utilized and 
manifested in our lives to others; and thereby 
glorify our Father in heaven. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “When I first came 
to Christ I was happy all the time, and I sang: 

“‘Oh, happy day, that fixed my choice 
On thee, my Saviour and my God.’ 


Complete in Christ. 


215 


“I find that I must live with my heart fixed 
on Christ all the time, as it was when I first 
believed. I now believe my sins are washed 
away by the precious atoning blood of Christ, 
and I would be glad to live in Christ, obeying 
and trusting Him and receive from His infinite 
fullness as I did when I first trusted Him.” 

If we would have every day equally happy 
in the Lord, Tve must live in Him as we did 
then. It is truly a sad experience when God’s 
children have to sing: 

“What peaceful hours I then enjoyed, 

How sweet their memory still! 

But now I find an aching void, 

The world can never fill. 

“Return, O Holy Dove, return, 

Sweet messenger of rest! 

I hate the sins that made thee mourn, 

And drove thee from my breast.” 

When we find our peace and joy less, we 
should give up all sin, trust in Christ, and try 
to obey all He commands, and please Him in 
all we do; for this was that which made our 
first day’s experience so happy. It was tasting 
the goodness, love and grace of God in Christ 
in the forgiveness of sins, peace with God, and 


216 


The New Life in Christ. 


the glorious hope of heaven. But the half of 
these joys are often not realized by many 
Christians, because they do not faithfully and 
lovingly obey Christ in all things. By loving 
obedience and conscious dependence upon 
Christ we may receive from His infinite full¬ 
ness that which will make us complete in Him. 
We may so rest upon Him, and receive from 
him such heavenly joys that we may grow 
more and more happy and more and more like 
Him every day. 

In His love He died for us and made atone¬ 
ment for our sins, and now He loves us and 
lives in us and supplies all our needs from His 
infinite fullness, and simply requires that we 
love Him and live in Him and appropriate all 
the infinite supplies He has prepared for us. 
How strange that any of us at any time 
should ever turn from Him, the fountain of 
living waters, to drink at the broken cisterns 
of earth’s sinful pleasures! 


LESSON XVIII. 


JOY IN GOD. 

W JE also joy in God through our Lord Jesus 
Christ, by whom we have now received 
^^ the reconcilation.”—Rom. 5 :11, R. V.) 

Hitherto ye have asked nothing in 
my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your 
joy may be full.”—John 16:24. 

Most Christians live far below their privil¬ 
eges in Christ, and fail to reach the high devel¬ 
opment in spirituality and usefulness which 
is possible. Some fail to grow in grace and 
in the knowledge of Christ, while others fail 
to grow in the graces of the Spirit in putting 
off the old body of sin and putting on the new 
man. These lose much of the joys of salvation 
and usefulness which the obedient children of 
God realize. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “It is a sad thing to 
live without the peace, joy and comfort of a 
happy Christian experience!” 

“The joy of the Lord is your strength,” and 
many Christians find themselves weak indeed 

217 




218 


The Neiv Life in Christ. 


because they live so far from God, and in so 
much disobedience that they lose much of the 
joy of the Lord from their lives. 

Will Harrison: “Why need any Christian 
live devoid of joy? The source of joy is God, 
and it comes through Christ. It seems to me 
that this joy might be constant and full.” 

“These things write we unto you, that your 
joy may be full.” “These things have I spoken 
unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and 
that your joy might be full.” “Hitherto have 
ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye 
shall receive, that your joy might be full.” So 
we see that joy depends upon belief: “Believ¬ 
ing, we rejoice to see the curse removed,” and 
it depends upon obedience and believing prayer. 

We joy in God, through Christ, by whom we 
have been reconciled to God, by means of His 
atoning sacrifice. God made Him to be sin 
for us, that we might be made the righteous¬ 
ness of God in Him. We should never lose 
sight of this fact if we would live in the joy 
of God. We should remember that our sins 
with all their guilt and punishment were placed 
upon Christ, and He was regarded and treated 
as though He had been the sinner; while the 
merit of His obedience and atoning death are 
placed to our account, and we are treated as 
though all their merit was our own. 


Joy in God. 


219 


Neil Johnson : “It is necessary for us to 
know and believe the truths of the gospel, as 
well as to trust in Christ in order that we may 
joy in God.” 

“Being justified by faith, we have peace with 
God, through our Lord Jesus Christ; by whom 
we have access by faith into this grace where¬ 
in we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory 
of God.” Since Christ has suffered for our 
sins, and redeemed us from under the law, and 
put us under grace, “there is therefore now no 
condemnation to them which are in Christ 
Jesus.” “It is God that justifies. Who is he 
that condemns? It is Christ that died, yea 
rather, that is risen again, who is even at the 
right hand of God, who also makes interces¬ 
sion for us.” Since Christ died for us while 
we were sinners, and we were reconciled 
to God when we were enemies, by the 
death of Christ, much more now, being recon¬ 
ciled and His friends, we shall be saved by the 
life of Christ. 

We now joy in God who gave Christ to die 
for and save us, and who will also with him 
freely give us all things in Him. We joy in 
Him who saved us and gave us peace, eternal 
life and hope of glory, and shed abroad the 
love of God in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, 
whom He has given unto us. 


220 


The New Life in Christ . 


Lee Wallace: “The cares and burdens of 
life usually close the windows of our souls to 
the joys of salvation, and to the light of God’s 
countenance. Many do not know how to have 
joy in God because ‘in the world ye shall have 
tribulation/ and they have not learned how to 
be of good cheer and have peace with Christ.” 

We are to find joy in God by “ casting all 
your care upon Him; for He careth for you.” 
“Be careful for nothing; but in everything by 
prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving 
let your requests be made known unto God.” 
Life has its cares, and every heart knows its 
own sorrow, and these naturally tend to choke 
the joys and comforts offered by the Word of 
God and the exceeding great and precious 
promises of the Lord. But He tells us not to 
be anxious about anything. Our lives are in 
His hands and He cares for us; and says, that 
He will never leave nor forsake us, and we 
need not be anxious about what we shall eat, 
or drink, or put on. “For your heavenly 
Father knoweth that ye have need of all these 
things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God 
and His righteousness; and all these things 
shall be added unto you.” In this way the new 
creature, by making the new life in himself 
and others his greatest aim and good, may es¬ 
cape those choking cares and have all need- 


Joy in God . 


221 


ful things added unto him. By seeking first 
God and His kingdom, and casting all care 
upon God, He will make it needless for him to 
be anxious about anything. 

Mack Norman : “It does seem that the Lord’s 
children ought to be willing and able to meet 
all these demands and trust Him with full 
and perfect confidence. Why are they so fear¬ 
ful, unbelieving, disobedient and unhappy?” 

We might answer how they fall into this 
state easier than we can say why. “O thou of 
little faith! Wherefore didst thou doubt?” 
Peter turned his eyes away from Christ to the 
boisterous winds and the high rolling waves 
and began to sink. So when we turn our eyes 
away from Christ to the winds and waves 
and look to the pleasures of earth to satisfy our 
souls, instead of finding our joy in God, then 
we are unhappy. Why a child of God should 
turn from the pure, sweet waters of life in 
Christ to drink at sin’s muddy pools, I cannot 
say. Why he should look from Christ and 
the great safety of the soul and life sheltered 
in Him, and dread the impending dangers, as 
though they were stronger than he, I cannot 
tell. Nor can I tell how they can count any¬ 
thing as affording greater joy than the joy in 
God. 


222 


The New Life in Christ . 


Burt Norman: “Why is it that Christians 
do not joy in God all the time? Do not many 
seem to joy more in what they get from Him, 
than in Him personally? It seems to me that 
many are willing to be saved by our Lord’s 
merits, who know and care little about living 
in Christ. There are some strange things to 
me in these phases of Christian experience.’’ 

The true Christian rejoices in God as his 
reconciled Father and portion, and this in¬ 
cludes all other blessings. “Let us therefore 
come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we 
may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in 
time of need.” We can come with freedom 
and confidence, because our reconciled Father 
sits upon this throne of grace to give the 
blessings of salvation through the redemption 
by Christ; and through Christ we also have 
joyful communion with God. Many fail to 
come with freedom and confidence to God in 
prayer, and thus obtain these blessings of 
mercy, grace, and communion with God to 
help them in their need. 

Miss Hattie Warner : “Why is it that new 
creatures pray so many times, and never get 
any answer? I believe in prayer, and that the 
Lord will answer all true prayer; but I do not 
understand how to pray and get the answer.” 


Joy in God. 


223 


Some one has said that prayer is like the cry 
of a babe. It wants something, and its cry is 
its prayer for it. When it becomes a child, 
it can ask for what it wants; but it is not 
able to ask wisely. As a youth it can tell why 
it wants the things, but is often impulsive and 
passionate, and selfish in its demands. But 
when mature, he can then give good and satis¬ 
factory reasons for his requests. The cry of 
the babe in Christ, and the requests of the child 
and the youth are generally more or less self¬ 
ish; and many of them seem to feel they are 
coming to a great rich God, and try to wrest 
from Him blessings by means of the promises 
to use selfishly without any regard to His 
kingdom and glory. 

But those of riper experience gain such 
fellowship with God, such union and com¬ 
munion with Him in Christ, and acquire such 
trust in God, and such insight into the mind 
and purposes of God that they ask under the 
leadings of the Holy Spirit, and have the 
things they ask. By living in this close union 
and communion with God, and being brought 
into close sympathy with the will, purpose 
and word of the Lord, the believer will think 
His thoughts, and be in such sympathy with 
His purposes, that he will ask according to 
the will of God. He will find a calm, firm 
conviction that it will be done. "If ye abide 


224 


The New Life in Christ. 


in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask 
what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” 

Burt Norman: “I fear much of my praying 
has been only the cry of the babe; *but it F 
so sweet to think how the loving Father heeds 
the crying of His babe. I tremble when I 
think how selfish many of my prayers must 
be, trying to get blessings from the loving 
Father simply for my own personal good! I 
do want to get so close to Christ, that my 
cries and my requests shall be in perfect ac¬ 
cord with His will, and the accomplishment 
of His purposes concerning me.” 

It is sweet to so abide in Christ, and to know 
and obey His word, that we may pray, and 
feel a calm conviction that our prayers are 
heard, and shall be answered! We ought to 
live in such fellowship with Christ that our 
firm trust in Him will assure us that the 
infinite love of God, which led Him to give His 
Son to die for us, will also fully give us all 
things. He who cares for the birds, the lilies 
and the grass, will much more care for His own 
children. He says to them: “I will never 
leave thee, nor forsake thee;” “casting all 
your care upon Him; for He cares, for you;” 
and, “be anxious for nothing; but in every¬ 
thing by prayer and supplication with thanks- 


Joy in God . 


225 


giving, let your requests be made known unto 
God.” Then “the peace of God, which passeth 
all understanding, shall keep your hearts and 
minds through Christ Jesus.” He also says: 
“I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So 
that we may confidently say, The Lord is my 
helper, and I will not fear what man shall do 
unto me.” 

Will Harrison: “These promises are cause 
for great joy to Christians! Why is it that 
they do not rejoice in their absolute freedom 
from all necessity for anxiety about anything? 
Since God is ever present, and fully able to 
supply all their needs, and will never leave 
them, what need they fear? He has already 
saved them, made them new creatures, given 
them eternal life, and infinite resources in 
Christ from which they may draw when they 
have need; and what can now stand in the way 
of their having fullness of joy?” 

There is nothing, unless they live out of fel¬ 
lowship with Christ, and in disobedience to 
His words, and thereby lose their privilege in 
prayer. He says: “Ask, that your joy may be 
full;” “and whatsoever ye shall ask in my 
name, that will I do, that the Father may be 
glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything 
in my name, I will do it.” With such priv- 

15 


226 


The New Life in Christ. 


ileges as these, we should not be anxious about 
anything; but be filled with joy in the Lord. 
Paul and Silas sang praises to God at mid¬ 
night in the prison while their feet were fast 
in the stocks; and other apostles rejoiced that 
they were counted worthy to suffer stripes for 
their Lord. 

Lee Wallace: “What constitutes a true 
Scriptural cause for fullness of joy? and how 
is it to be obtained V’ 

John finds cause for fullness of joy in the 
“fellowship with the Father, and with His 
Son Jesus Christ;’’ and the Lord Jesus tells us 
to abide in Him, as the branch abides in 
the vine; and “he that hath my com¬ 
mandments and keepeth them, he it is that 
loveth me; and he that loveth me shall be 
loved of my Father, and I will love him, and 
will manifest myself unto him.” “If a man 
love me, he will keep my words; and my 
Father will love him, and we will come unto 
him, and will make our abode with him.” “If 
ye love me keep my commandments; and I will 
pray the Father, and He will give you another 
Comforter, that He may abide with you for¬ 
ever.” “These things have I spoken unto you, 
that my joy might remain in you, and that 
your joy might be full.” 


Joy in God . 


227 


Charles Warner: “I want to thank you 
for this lesson, and most of all to thank the 
Lord for the truths taught in it. For seven 
years I have lived in disobedience and dark¬ 
ness; and of late I have longed to know how 
to get back to His service, and to feel and know 
that He is with me. My prayers have been 
only the cries of the babe in the dark; but I 
now feel that I give up all known sin, and I am 
studying His word to know and do His will; 
and then I may expect and realize His pres¬ 
ence, and be glad in the Lord all the time. I 
am ashamed to remember how selfish I have 
been! I lived to please self, and even my pray¬ 
ers were full of self. I want to please God 
and glorify Him.” 

Burt Norman: “I find it so much easier 
to do the will of God, than to joyfully suffer 
His will. My soul has been in darkness be¬ 
cause of reverses in business. Every enter¬ 
prise of late has come short, and I have al¬ 
most fainted. I feel that I would be so happy 
if I could succeed as before; but when I pray, 
and tell my trouble to the Lord He seems 
never to hear me. I feel sometimes that it is 
all a mistake, I am no child of God, and almost 
lose hope; but I remember the experiences of 
the past, and my present trust, and then I 
think with some joy: ‘whom the Lord loveth 


228 


The New Life in Christ. 


He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom 
He receiveth/ As Paul prayed three times 
for the removal of the thorn in his flesh, and 
received only as answer, a closer fellowship 
with Christ, as he heard Him saying, ‘My 
grace is sufficient for thee; for my strength is 
made perfect in weakness/ I do want to 
reach such trust in Christ, and sympathy with 
the purposes of God concerning me, that I 
may most gladly glory in my losses, and take 
pleasure in the disappointment of my plans, 
if thereby ‘the power of Christ may rest upon 
me/ I know that it requires more than ordi¬ 
nary piety to reach this close and happy fel¬ 
lowship with Christ. That I may know ‘the 
fellowship of His sufferings/ is a phase of 
experience I have never wished to know be¬ 
fore.” 

Most Christians live on so low a plane of 
fellowship with Christ that they faint when 
rebuked, or chastened, by the Lord. It is true 
we are not to seek trials and sufferings, yet 
when they come in His providence and pur¬ 
pose concerning us, we should seek grace and 
strength to so bear them for Christ that we 
may be brought into close and intimate fellow¬ 
ship with Him. 

Our Lord provides for us in such way, that 
we may have fullness of joy in Him all the 


Joy in God . 


229 


time. By abiding in.Christ, keeping His words, 
abiding in His love, and by obeying His com¬ 
mands we may enjoy the love and presence of 
Himself and the Father; and by loving obe¬ 
dience to Christ we are to enjoy the indwell¬ 
ing of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, and 
abound in the joys of salvation. The fruits of 
the Spirit, love, joy, peace, and many other 
experiences of the new life are to be realized 
by yielding ourselves up to God as dear chil¬ 
dren. It is not possible for us to have much 
real joy in God without strong trust, and lov¬ 
ing, faithful obedience to Christ, as well as 
belief of His word and abiding in Him. 

Will Harrison: “I have been trying to 
measure my life by such Scriptures as these: 
c Whatsoever he doeth shall prosper/ ‘When a 
man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even 
his enemies to be at peace with him/ and ‘No 
good thing will He withhold from them that 
walk uprightly.’ Many times I have to take 
my bearings by these and other passages of 
Scripture, when I find that I have unconscious¬ 
ly turned from the straight path of obedience 
to the word of the Lord.” 

I am sure that Burt is now succeeding far 
better than many in business; and may it not 
be that the Lord is preparing him to bear and 


230 


The New Life in Christ. 


properly use increased success, or to bring him 
into closer relations with Himself and pre¬ 
pare him for greater usefulness in His ser¬ 
vice?” 

Burt Norman: “My failures in business 
have already brought me into partnership with 
the Lord; and I find more joy in recognizing 
Him as owning a tenth of my income than ever 
I thought possible.” 


LESSON XIX. 


CHRIST IN THE BELIEVER. 

XAMINE yourselves, whether ye be in 
the faith; prove your own selves. 
Know ye not your own selves, that Je¬ 
sus Christ is in you, except ye be rep¬ 
robates?”—2 Cor. 13:5. 

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I 
live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and 
the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by 
the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, 
and gave Himself for me.”—Gal. 2:20. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “How can a Chris- 
tain prove himself whether he be in the faith 
or not? If there be any infallible tests, I for 
one would like to know them; this is one thing 
I can not afford to be mistaken about. I 
would like to have it settled for time and eter¬ 
nity.”. 

Miss Mary Long: “Yes, I would, too. I 
have been examining myself, not to see if I 

231 



232 


The New Life in Christ. 


am in the faith, but if I am what a Christian 
ought to be; and I find I am not. Now I am 
ready to prove myself, and see if I am in the 
faith, and if Christ is dwelling in me.” 

The first and most important test of being 
in the faith is, Christ is in all true Christians. 
Is Christ in you, the hope of glory? As a 
poor, guilty, lost sinner, do you believe that 
Christ is the Son of God, and that He died 
for our sins? Are you trusting in Him, and 
depending upon Him and His atoning death 
for salvation and peace with God? If so, you 
are in the faith, in real union with Christ by 
faith, and are not false professors. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I do feel myself a 
sinner, and like David, I say: H acknowledge 
my transgressions; and my sin is ever before 
me;’ and I believe that Jesus died for our sins, 
and I am trusting Him as my Savior, and I 
have peace with God, and hope of heaven 
through Him; but I want some proof that this 
faith is true.” 

If you really do trust Christ, then you love 
Him as your Savior, and this love w T ill lead 
you to love His people, and to study His word 
and try to obey His commands. “Every one 
that loveth is born of God;” “We know that 


Christ in the Believer. 


233 


we have passed from death unto life, because 
we love the brethren/’ and “whosoever believ- 
eth that Jesus is the Christ, is born of God;” 
also “God is love; and he that dwelleth in 
love dwelleth in God.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I find that I love 
God, and I love Christians, and I honestly be¬ 
lieve that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, 
and I love and trust Him as my Savior, and I 
believe that I shall be saved because He says 
so; but I do want to know that I am crucified 
with Christ, and that I am alive to God, and 
that Christ lives in me. I want to have Christ 
abide in me, and manifest Himself to me; and 
I want to know that I am living by faith in 
Christ. Am I asking too much, and seeking 
for more than I shall ever be able to realize?” 

I think not; because, “Christ is in you,” if 
ye be not false professors. He lived in Paul, 
and says: “He that hath my commandments, 
and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and 
he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, 
and I will love him, and will manifest myself 
unto him.” “If a man love me, he will keep my 
words; and my Father will love him, and we 
will come unto him, and make our abode with 
him.” By knowing and doing our Lord’s com¬ 
mands, we manifest our love to Him, and se- 


234 


The Neiv Life in Christ. 


cure His and the Father’s special love, their 
indwelling presence, and the manifestation of 
Christ to us. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “There is where I 
have failed, ignorance of His words, and dis¬ 
obedience to His commands, have caused all 
my darkness and trouble. But by His grace, 
and the help of the Holy Spirit, I am deter¬ 
mined to study the Bible and find out and do 
all He says. It will be so sweet to realize His 
and the Father’s presence and love all the 
time, and to have my Savior manifest Himself 
unto me.” 

Will Harrison: “How is the Christian 
crucified with Christ, and yet alive? I know 
that the unregenerate are dead in trespasses 
and sins; and I can see how they are made 
alive from spiritual death by regeneration; but 
how are they made dead to sin and the law?” 

By virtue of their oneness with Christ, all 
He does for them as their substitute, is the 
same to them as if they had done it in their 
own persons. So when Christ was crucified 
and died for their sins, it is the same as if 
they had died for sin and satisfied the law 
themselves. They are one with Him as the 
branch is one with the vine, and the members 


Christ in the Believer. 


235 


one with the head. Being one with Him by 
faith, in Him they hung upon the cross and 
died to sin, the law and the world. 

Burt Norman : “As no one can really be said 
to be dead to sin until he has been regenerated 
and united to Christ by faith, does he die to sin 
by regeneration or by the crucifixion of 
Christ?” 

% 

Faith unites to Christ and gives the be¬ 
liever the benefits of His atoning death, and 
none can exercise this faith in Christ till they 
have been born of God. They become dead 
to sin and the law by the body of Christ, in 
which He died for their sins, when they are 
made new creatures and trust Him for salva¬ 
tion. By the new birth they were raised up 
from spiritual death, and made alive to God, 
and by their union by faith to Christ they be¬ 
come dead to sin and the law. 

Miss Mary Long : “How is it that many of 
us'commit so much sin, if we are dead to it? 
The dead do not live in this world any more; 
and if we are dead to sin, how can we sin any 
more?” 

We are not dead to the power of sin, but to 
its guilt. We died in the death of Christ to the 


236 


The New Life in Christ. 


law, and to the guilt of sin; and are forever 
freed from its condemnation. When the sin¬ 
ner believes in Christ, and trusts Him for sal¬ 
vation, he is; received of the Father in Christ 
for time and eternity, and is justified from 
all sin, and through repentance he is fully 
forgiven. This justification and forgiveness 
in Christ are given once for all, and they are 
perfect and complete for time and eternity. 
Because, “there is therefore now no condem¬ 
nation to them which are in Christ Jesus.” 
“He that heareth wy word, and believeth on 
Him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and 
shall not come into condemnation; but is pass¬ 
ed from death unto life.” 

We are not dead to the power of sin, and 
may and do commit sin after we are dead to 
its guilt, and are dead to the condemnation of 
the law. 

Mack Norman: “How is it that we feel so 
badly over our sins, if we are dead to their 
guilt, and are justified and forgiven in Christ 
for time and eternity?” 

Not because we have lost our justification 
or forgiveness; but by our sin we lose the ev¬ 
idences of them, and so lose the peace and joys 
of our salvation. The knowledge of our true 
state with God depends upon the witness of 


Christ in the Believer . 


237 


the Holy Spirit within us, and unrepented 
sin grieves the Spirit and deprives us of this 
witness. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “Upon what condi¬ 
tions can we obtain forgiveness and have the 
joys of salvation restored ?” 

Forgiveness of believers refers to their per¬ 
sonal relations with God, and is not a matter 
of law. They are justified from all their legal 
obligation by faith in Christ, and have been 
forgiven all their offenses by repentance and 
confession. Faith is necessary to justifica¬ 
tion, and repentance to forgiveness. Another 
condition of being forgiven of God, is that we 
forgive others. “If ye forgive men their tres¬ 
passes, your heavenly Father will forgive you 
your trespasses; but if ye forgive not men their 
trespasses, neither will your heavenly Father 
forgive you.” 

Will Harrison : “Some say that we are not 
required to forgive anyone until he repents 
and confesses his wrong; that God does not 
forgive us till we repent and confess, and we 
are to forgive others as He does us.” 

We are to pray, “forgive us our debts, as we 
forgive our debtors.” Now we have sinned 


238 


The New Life in Christ. 


against God so many times, when we were un¬ 
conscious of it, and we have forgotten many 
of our offences against Him; and if we never 
forgive any except those who repent and con¬ 
fess, then by so doing we ask God not to for¬ 
give us our unrepented and unconfessed sins, 
and to chasten and scourge us for them. No, 
as I want full and free forgiveness from the 
Lord for all my offenses against Him, I would 
be in a hurry to forgive all who trespass 
against me. 

Lee Wallace : “It is very important that 
we fully realize that we live this new life as 
Christians by faith in Christ. So many seem to 
look to the law for deliverance and final per¬ 
fection, while life comes alone from Christ 
through faith.” 

“If we be dead with Christ, we believe that 
we shall also live with Him.” “We were 
buried with Him by baptism into death; that 
like as Christ was raised up from the dead by 
the glory of the Father, even so we also should 
walk in newness of life:” “buried with Him in 
baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him 
through faith in the working of God, who 
raised Him from the dead.” 

The Christian sets forth by baptism the fact 
of his death, burial and resurrection to spirit- 


Christ in the Believer. 


239 


iial life with Christ; and it seems that he would 
never think of looking to any other source for 
life and salvation than to Him. Such as de¬ 
pend upon the law and their own works are not 
in the faith, and the law and their works are 
in them their hope of glory, and not, Christ. 

Burt Norman: “How does Christ live in 
us? Paul says: ‘Nevertheless I live; yet not 
I, but Christ liveth in me.’ I think that this 
kind of life would be the strongest kind of 
proof that one is in the faith/’ 

Christ living in us, and our living by faith in 
Christ, is best proof that we are in the faith. 
Paul knew that he had no spiritual life apart 
from Christ, as the branch has no life in itself 
apart from the vine; so he lived by the life of 
Christ. He rested by faith upon Christ and 
His atoning death, resurrection and life as 
the only ground and source of life and salva¬ 
tion. By the indwelling also of the Spirit in 
Christians, Christ lives in them, and works in 
and by them. “If any man have not the Spirit 
of Christ, he none of His.” He dwells in all 
who are new creatures, and forms them into 
the likeness and character of Christ. 

Christ is the life of believers, and His 
strength is made perfect in their weakness, and 
His grace is sufficient for them; in so much 


240 


The New Life in Christ. 


that the power of Christ rests upon us. All 
things are possible with God, and if Christ 
lives in us we ought to be able to live godly 
lives, and bear much fruit to the glory of God. 
If He lives in us we ought to live His life and 
do His work. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “How may we real¬ 
ize that the Lord is with us? I have not been 
living all these years, since I first trusted in 
Him, in such way as to realize that He has 
been in my life. I have not been living by 
His strength, nor living as He would live, nor 
doing the works He would do; but by His help 
I purpose to do so in the future.” 

Jesus says: “He that hath my command¬ 
ments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth 
me; and he that loveth me shall be loved of my 
Father, and I will love him, and will mani¬ 
fest myself unto him;” and, “If a man love 
me, he will keep my words; and my Father 
will love him, and we will come unto him, and 
make our abode with Him.” Here we have 
the whole secret of success in the Christian 
life. By faith in Christ, they live by His life, 
by the knowledge, belief and obedience of His 
words they manifest their love to Him, and 
realize His and the Father’s love, and presence, 
and indwelling. 


Christ in the Believer . 


241 


Miss Hattie Warner: “I see the cause of 
all my darkness and doubts now. I did not 
read the Bible that I might know and keep 
the commandments of Christ, and did not man¬ 
ifest my love to Him by obedience, and He did 
not manifest Himself, to me. He seemed a 
long way off, and when I tried to pray, His 
face seemed hid from me. But of late He 
seems so much nearer to me. Since I have 
been studying His word, and trying to do all 
that He commands, I have felt that He accepts 
me in Christ, and has not seemed to be hid 
away from my sight. If I may abide in Him, 
and His words abide in me, I will truly live a 
happy life. I do not want His face ever hid 
from my soul any more; but I hope to realize 
the manifestations of His presence as long as 
I live in the world.” 

Miss Mary Long: “If Christ lives in us, 
and we live by His life, and are strong in His 
strength, why then may we not live absolutely 
holy and sinless lives? I know my life is ex¬ 
ceedingly far below what I want it to be; but 
I see now how to make it much better than it 
has been. Can I make it perfect?” 

All of our lives might be a great deal better 
than they are, if we would use the means of 
grace, and live by faith upon the life, and 

16 


242 


The New' Life in Christ . 


strength and grace of God in Christ. Be sure 
you look to Christ, and what He has done for 
you, as the foundation of your life and salva¬ 
tion, and not to what the Holy Spirit is doing- 
in you. 

The reason we are never absolutely holy and 
sinless in this life is because the “old man/’ 
the fleshly nature, is never fully dead, and 
separated from us while we live in the flesh. 
By the Holy Spirit we are to mortify the 
deeds of the body, and crucify the flesh; but 
the conflict between the Spirit and the flesh 
will never be over while we live in these mor¬ 
tal bodies. 

Let us see that Christ dwells in us. “Love 
is of God; and everyone that loveth is born 
of God, and knoweth God.” “God is love; and 
he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in 
God, and God in him;” and, “If we 
love one another, God dwelleth in us, 
and His love is perfected in us.” “Whoso¬ 
ever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, 
God dwelleth in him, and he in God.” “He 
that keepeth His commandments dwelleth in 
Him, and He in him; and hereby we know that 
He abideth in us, by the Spirit which He hath 
given us:” “and this is His commandment, that 
we should believe on the name of His Son 
Jesus Christ, and love one another, as He 
gave us commandment.” 


Christ in the Believer. 


243 


Do we believe on Jesus Christ, and confess 
that He is the Son of God? Do we love God 
and the brethren, and live in love, and keep 
the commands of Christ? Then God dwells 
in us, and we in Him. 

Miss Mary Long : “If it is Christ who lives 
in us, and we live by faith in Christ, it seems 
that we ought to be able to live far better than 
many of us have lived. I have tried to live 
too much by my own strength, and it has been 
more I, than Christ, that has lived in me. I 
have been slow coming to the light; but now 
I can fully say: ‘None of self; but all of 
Christ;’ and He is my complete Savior. I 
have been led to realize, that I shall find all 
in all in Him.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “My past failures, 
I see now, grew out of the fact that I was not 
living by faith in Christ, and Christ was not 
living in me. If I had yielded myself up to 
Him, and lived by faith in Him, I should have 
been able by His strength to have overcome 
the world. If Christ lives in us, we will live 
His life, and do His work, and overcome by 
His strength, 

“This has been a very happy lesson to me. I 
have been led to realize the presence of my 


244 


The New Life in Christ. 


Savior, and to have the evidence of the in¬ 
dwelling of my Lord. It is so precious to real¬ 
ize that He is with me again! I know what 
it is to have Christ live in me, and to live by 
faith in Him.” 

Burt Norman: “I had ‘found trouble and 
sorrow’ in my business, and in the Fiftieth 
Psalm the Lord says for us to give thanks, pay 
our vows to the Most High, and call upon 
Him in the day of trouble, and He will deliver 
us. I found that I had much to be thankful 
for, and I paid up such of my unpaid vows as 
I could think of unto the Lord, and I called 
upon Him in my trouble. He delivered me 
from all my anxiety, helped me to get my busi¬ 
ness straight; and filled my heart with praise. 
It is my firm purpose to have His words and 
try to obey them, and abide in Him that I may 
glorify my heavenly Father by bearing much 
fruit. There have been many blessings upon 
my honoring the Lord with my substance, and 
with the first fruits of my increase, which I 
have been able to see, and my faith in God 
assures me that He will make all things work 
together for my good if I love God sincerely 
and obey His commands. I set this Scripture 
before me as my aim and purpose in life: 
‘God is able to make all grace abound unto 
you; that ye, having always all sufficiency in 


Christ in the Believer. 


245 


everything, may abound unto every good 
work;’ that ‘ye being enriched in everything 
unto all liberality.’ I want to feel that God 
loves me, because, ‘God loves a cheerful giver.’ 
I know if I sow bountifully, I shall reap boun¬ 
tifully.” 

Will Harrison: “I have been led to feel 
that it is the Lord’s will that I give myself 
wholly to the work of the ministry, and I want 
to make it the aim of my ministry to sow 
bountifully and liberally, with the assurance 
that, ‘God is able to make all grace abound 
unto you.’ My aim is to.be ‘a good minister 
of Jesus Christ,’ to preach Christ and Him 
crucified, and not to be ashamed of the gospel 
of Christ.” 

Mack Norman: “I am happy in the same 
conviction with Will, I know that my suffi¬ 
ciency is of the Lord; and I purpose to try to 
know and do the commandments of our Lord 
so that I may have His and the Father’s love, 
and realize their indwelling presence, and the 
manifestation of themselves to me in my work. 
These lessons have been of great benefit to 
me, and I believe they will prove a blessing 
through my whole life work.” 

Miss Mary Long : “I am so thankful that I 
am saved by grace through faith in Christ; 


246 . 


The 'New Life in Christ . 


and am not looking to my works at all for 
salvation. I am full of joy in God.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “All these lessons 
have been a blessing to me; but this last has 
led me back to peace and rest in Christ. He 
manifests Himself to me, and drives out all 
my darkness and doubts. I begin to know 
what is meant by, ‘Christ liveth in me , 7 and ‘I 
live by the faith of the Son of God . 7 I hope 
to abide in Christ, and have His words abide 
in me. I have had a trembling hope of late 
that the Holy Spirit might honor me by 
sending me ‘far hence unto the Gentiles . 7 It 
would be a great joy for me to devote my life 
specially to His service, either at home, or in' 
foreign lands. I feel that I have yielded up 
myself to the Lord to be led and used by the 
Holy Spirit at His will . 77 

Almost the entire class expressed them¬ 
selves as greatly benefitted by the lessons, and 
wanted them published so that they might get 
further help from them in their future Chris¬ 
tian lives. Most of them felt that they could 
never be satisfied any more with the beautiful 
poetry, choice quotations and fine sketches of 
Eastern travel given them by their former 
teacher, instead of the word of God and the 
teachings of Christ. They were unitedly pray- 


Christ in the Believer. 


247 


ing that he might be, like Peter, converted, 
and be able to strengthen the brethren. 

I urged that they bear in mind that Chris¬ 
tianity does not consist in feeling, but is a mat¬ 
ter of principle. 

“Trusting Jesus, that is all. 

I dare not trust the sweetest frame, 

But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.” 

Sometimes you will be filled with joy inex¬ 
pressible and full of glory, and wake up the 
next morning cold, dark, and ready to doubt 
that you have any part in the matter. But 
do not allow yourself misled. Nothing has 
changed upon which you are depending. Christ 
has not changed, nor the Bible, nor have the 
promises of God. You are trusting Christ, 
and depending upon the promises of God in the 
Bible, and you are safe. Only you or your feel¬ 
ings have changed, and you are not depend¬ 
ing on them, and are perfectly safe. 4 
Let us learn to experience more of the joy, 
grace, safety and blessings we have in Christ. 
We are saved and have all the riches of grace 
in Him; let us learn by faith, obedience and 
by the blessings of the Spirit to experience the 
fullness of blessings in Christ. 


LESSON XX. 


FAITH IN GOD. 

H "1 AVE faith in God. For verily I 
say unto you, that whosoever shall 
say unto this mountain, be thou re¬ 
moved, and be thou cast into 
the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but 
shall believe that those things which he saith 
shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever 
he saith. Therefore I say unto you, what 
things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe 
that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” 
—Mark 11:22-24. 

Faith in God implies belief and trust. Be¬ 
lief in God, that He is and is able to do all He 
has said, and also a firm and unyielding de¬ 
pendence upon Him and belief and trust in 
His word. 

Burt Norman : “The great cause of all our 
anxieties and failures in life, it seems to me, 
is found in our lack of faith in God and belief 
of His word. Why is it that we have so little 
faith?” 

248 



Faith in God. 


249 


“He arose and rebuked the wind, and said 
nnto the sea, Peace be still; and the wind 
ceased, and there was a great calm. And He 
said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is 
it that ye have no faith ?” The disciples did 
not even try to answer why they had so little 
faith; nor can we give a satisfactory reason 
why our faith is so weak. They had seen so 
many evidences of His divine power as proof 
that He was the Son of God,-that it does seem 
they could have had no doubt left. We would 
think that no new danger could so fill them 
with fear as to cloud their faith and cause 
them to doubt. 

Will Harrison : “The disciples believed 
Christ to be the Son of God with power over 
all things, and I wonder that they could have 
had any fear of perishing while He was in the 
ship with them. Satan might have thought to 
engulf and drown Him while He slept; but 
they should have known that God’s Son was 
safe anywhere. Yet it appears that every 
trouble filled them with doubt and fear, and ev¬ 
ery new display of His power only increased 
their wonder. How often we find them in fear, 
doubt and astonishment! and yet they believed 
that He had divine power, and had seen many 
manifestations of it. This has been hard for 
me to understand.” 


250 


The New Life in Christ 


Yes, it is true, and the Lord explained it in 
this way: “O fools, and slow of heart to be¬ 
lieve all that the prophets have spoken!” Some¬ 
times I think that we are more blameworthy 
for our unbelief, anxiety and fear than even the 
disciples were. We have clearer knowledge of 
the character and mission of Christ, as God 
manifest in the flesh; and we have such clear ev¬ 
idence of His presence and love; and yet we are 
too often in darkness, doubt and fear. He has 
promised never to leave nor forsake us, but to 
supply all our needs; and He invites us to come 
boldly to His rich throne of grace and obtain 
grace and help for all times of need. 

Neil Johnson : “I have had very little doubts 
or fears as to my salvation since I first found 
the Lord. My mind has been at perfect rest as 
to my eternal life and heavenly home; but it 
has been' very different as to my temporal af¬ 
fairs. When my health failed, and it appeared 
that my business must fall through, some lead¬ 
ing church members threatened to close me up 
by the law if payments were not made. It was 
vain to beg for time, so I prayed God to give 
me as strong faith in Him in temporal things 
as He had given me in spiritual matters, and to 
make my mind entirely free from all anxiety 
and care. He gave it; and now it is so sweet 
to live trusting in the Lord for all things. 


Faith in God. 


251 


Those church members did not press me with 
the law; and a true Christian brother came to 
my rescue, and my business is in far better 
shape that it has ever been.” 

Our Lord says, “Be not anxious” about the 
things of life; for your heavenly Father knows 
that you have need of all these things. “Seek 
ye first the kingdom of God and His righteous¬ 
ness, and all these things shall be added unto 
you.” We should learn to take God at His 
word, meet the conditions and realize His 
promises. If we would know the promises of 
God, and obediently trust them, we would have 
as sweet peace of mind from faith in God in 
temporal things as in spiritual. 

Miss Mary Long : “It is so sweet to trust 
in Jesus, and in the darkness to hear Him say¬ 
ing : ‘It is I; be not afraid/ I feel at such 
times that I will never fear again; but when 
darkness comes over me, I find myself fearing 
lest I shall be lost. But my remedy now is 
to look to* Jesus and trust in His atoning death, 
and rely upon His promise to never leave nor 
forsake me. When I remember that he is pres¬ 
ent with me with all power in heaven and on 
earth as my Savior, I can but feel safe.” 

Christ says, “Lo, I am with you alway,” and 
He is mighty to save. As He is our Savior, and 


252 


The New Life in Christ. 


will never leave nor forsake us, and is able to 
save to the uttermost, we may rest upon Him 
and His atoning death without any fear. We 
do Him honor by our unfearing trust, and by 
sweet confidence in His word. 

Miss Mary Long: “Are we to understand 
that we may command a mountain to be re¬ 
moved, and to be cast into the sea, and it will 
be done now? or were the apostles the only 
ones who might do this?” 

I think if we could meet the conditions now, 
the mountain would be removed. If we do not 
doubt in our hearts, but believe that the things 
which we say shall come to pass, we shall have 
whatsoever we say. “All things are possible 
to him that believes.” 

Will Harrison : “It seems that in true be¬ 
lieving prayer we may realize by faith that we 
have the things we ask. I have often wondered 
if we might always feel that the Lord says 
‘yes’ to all of our prayers of faith.” 

“W T hat things soever ye desire,’ when ye pray, 
believe that ye receive them; and ye shall have 
them.” It is a matter of faith. Without faith 
in God and dependence upon Christ there is 
no channel through which the answer to our 


Faith in God. 


253 


prayers can flow. Faith unites the believer 
to Christ and forms the only means of union 
and contact with God. This faith also requires 
submission to the purpose and will of God, and 
that we be able to feel and say, “Not my will, 
but thine be done.” “This is the confidence 
that we have in Him, that if we ask anything 
according to His will, He heareth us; and if 
we know that He hears us whatsoever we ask, 
we know that we have the petitions that we 
desired of Him.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “The great question 
in my experience is, how may we have our faith 
increased?” 

Mack Norman : “It seems to me that 
we ought to be careful to use the faith we al¬ 
ready have. We do believe in God and trust 
in Christ. We believe that the triune God is 
infinite, has all power, and that all things are 
possible with God. We believe in the love of 
God, His mercy and grace in Christ, the power 
of the atoning death and resurrection of Christ, 
and His intercession for us. We also believe 
that we are accepted of God in Christ, and 
are righteous in His righteousness, worthy in 
His worthiness, strong in His strength and are 
one with Him by faith. Let us live by His life, 
walk in His strength, be led by His Spirit, and 


254 


The ~New Life in Christ. 


we may pray in His name and have whatsoever 
we ask. There are full resources in Him, if we 
would only learn how to use them.” 

Having such a great and sufficient High 
Priest, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the 
throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and 
find grace to help in time of need.” The elec¬ 
tric car stands still on the track when its union 
is broken with the live wire above it. There 
is power enough in the wire, and machinery 
enough to move it forward; but it stands still 
because the current is broken. Yet even when 
the current is on, the car cannot move forward 
till the brakes have been removed. So should 
we have strong faith in Christ, and also ‘‘let us 
lay aside every weight and the sin that doth 
so easily beset us, and let us run with patience 
the race that is set before us>, looking unto 
Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “My great trouble 
has been that I did not remember the brakes 
and keep the union with Christ, by faith, un¬ 
obstructed. When I began to lay aside the 
weights and sins which had hindered my prog¬ 
ress, I failed to live looking unto Christ as the 
author and finisher of my faith. As attaching 
the trolley arm completes the union of the car 
with the source of light and power and enables 


Faith in God. 


255 


it to go forward when the brakes are off; so, 
by looking unto Christ by faith, I obtained 
light and power to go forward in my experi¬ 
ence. I want to keep all hindrances out of the 
way and go forward in my Christian life and 
in the Lord’s work.” 

“By whom we have access by faith into this 
grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope 
of the glory of God.” By faith in Christ we 
have access into the grace of justification, peace 
with God and sanctification, and by the same 
faith in Christ we are enabled to stand fast in 
this grace and rejoice in the hope of the glory 
of God. By faith through Christ we are en¬ 
abled to lay aside weights and besetting sins, 
and run with patience our course. Faith unites 
to Christ, and receives from Him all we need 
of grace, strength and power to live, overcome 
and work for God. 

Charles Warner: “Many Christians stand 
still when by faith in God they might go for¬ 
ward. After I found the Savior I had no one 
to teach me to know and do His words; and I 
failed to read my Bible that I might know and 
do His will. It seemed impossible for me to 
overcome my evil habits and give up my old 
worldly life and go forward in Christian obe¬ 
dience. I was standing still all these years 


256 


The New Life in Christ. 


while I ought to have gone forward by faith 
in God.” 

By faith in God and obedience to His word 
we may go forward in the face of great hin¬ 
drances. “With men this is impossible, but not 
with God; for with God all things are possi¬ 
ble.” Israel could not cross the Red Sea, nor 
could Moses divide it; but God told them to 
go forward. He also commanded Moses to lift 
up his rod and stretch forth his hand over the 
sea and divide it; and when Moses obeyed His 
word the Lord supplied the power, and it was 
done. So if we put forth proper effort with 
strong, unyielding faith in God, the difficul¬ 
ties in our way, though impossible with us, 
will be removed by the power of God. 

Neil Johnson : “Faith on the part of Moses 
made him sure of deliverance and confident of 
victory, while unbelief caused Israel to fear 
defeat and ruin. So faith makes the Christian 
strong in the Lord and in the power of His 
might, while unbelief fills with fear, failure 
and defeat.” 

All Israel had been delivered out of Egypt, 
and saw the leading cloudy pillar, the evidence 
of the presence of God with them, and should 
have known that He would deliver them from 


Faith in God. 


257 


the enemy. Yet they were full of fear and ex¬ 
pected sure destruction. How much like some 
Christians who though saved by grace through 
faith in Christ, and have peace with God and 
are led by the Holy Spirit, yet are often filled 
with darkness, fears and deep anxieties because 
of the weakness of their faith. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “It is perfectly nat¬ 
ural that a disobedient Christian should be 
filled with doubts and fears, and fail to under¬ 
stand God’s dealings. It is astonishing how 
much darkness fills the disobedient life, while 
there is so much light and help for the obedient, 
trusting Christian. My life has'been new since 
I made up my mind to do all Christ says do, 
and live looking to Him for life, grace, strength 
and salvation. I have learned something of 
living by faith in Christ and drawing from 
Him all the fullness and completeness I need. 
I want to walk with God, and, like Mary of 
old, sit at His feet and learn of Him all my 
life. I want to walk in the light as He is in 
the light, and to yield myself fully to the lead¬ 
ing of the Holy Spirit.” 

There are great blessings and pleasures in 
walking with God ;and in order to walk with 
Him we must be agreed with Him; for “can two 
walk together except they be agreed?” God 

17 


258 


The New Life in Christ. 


can never agree with us in our disobedience 
and sin. We must agree with Him in all His 
will and words. “Yield yourselves unto God, 
as those who are alive from the dead.” By liv¬ 
ing in such close union and communion with 
God by faith and loving obedience to all He 
says, we may know that Christ is in us and 
that we are in Him. 

Miss Mary Long : “How can we become per¬ 
fectly resigned to the will of God? I read my 
Bible and try to know and do all it says; but 
there is so much I do not understand and fail to 
remember. I have no doubt that the Bible tells 
us all we need to know of the revealed will of 
God, if we could only understand and do all 
it says. But I am so ignorant of its teachings, 
and have not made it the foundation of my 
life and character. I have followed my opin¬ 
ions, preferences and plans, and have followed 
my own will ,and walked much of my way in 
spiritual darkness.” 

God speaks to us in His Word, and has been 
speaking to us all our lives, and yet many of 
us have given tittle heed to what He is saying 
to us. How much better for us to hear what 
God says, believe and obey it ,and try to live 
by it in all things. We should seek the help of 
the Holy Spirit to enable us to love God su- 


Faith in God. 


259 


premely; and love “believeth all things,” and 
“seeketh not her own” will, but seeks the will 
of God. 

Will Harrison: “By faith in God through 
the believer’s union with Christ, he may draw 
from the infinite fullness of Christ all that 
he needs for time and for eternity. ‘Of His 
fullness have all we received;’ and ‘ye are com¬ 
plete in Him.’ We are nothing and have noth¬ 
ing in ourselves; but in Christ and from Him 
we have all things and abound. He is our life, 
our righteousness, our strength, our Redeemer, 
our all in all; and when we learn by faith to 
appropriate this infinite fullness to all our 
needs, then we know what it means to walk 
with God, live by faith and be led by the Holy 
Spirit. This is my one desire and daily prayer 
to God, that I may so abide in Christ and know 
and obey His words and have the indwelling 
of His Spirit, that I may receive of His full¬ 
ness and be complete in Him in all things.” 

Faith in God and prayer unites the believer 
with Omnipotence and gives him the omnipo¬ 
tent strength to support him; and faith in 
Christ unites him with the infinite fullness of 
Christ, and he may have by faith all he needs. 
Bv faith in Christ he is justified, has peace 
with God, eternal life, sufficient grace, perfect 


260 


The New Life in Christ. 


strength and all things are theirs in Christ. 
What wonderful blessings come to believers 
through the exercise of faith in God through 
Christ. All things are theirs in Christ, “and 
ye are Christ’s and Christ is God’s.” 

Charles Warner: “What vast sacrifices 
we who are in Christ do make when 
we turn our minds from the things which are 
above to the things on the earth! What doubts, 
darkness, weakness and troubles we endure 
while we try to walk alone, by going into dis¬ 
obedience and sin! It is my pleasure now to 
put off all the works of darkness, and by faith 
in Christ obtain grace and strength to live for 
Him who loved me and died for me. I shud¬ 
der when I remember how utterly dead I have 
lived to holiness and the service of God during 
the years I lived in the pleasures of sin. If 
these lessons have accomplished no more than 
to convert me from the error of my way, they 
have been truly not in vain.” 

Miss Mary Long: “I am filled with joy by 
the fact that I am looking to Jesus as my com¬ 
plete and perfect Savior, who was offered once 
to bear my sins, and hath entered into heaven 
itself now to appear in the presence of God for 
me, and hath put away my sin by the sacrifice 
of Himself; and by one sacrifice for sin for- 


Faith in God. 


261 


ever He hath perfected them that are sanctified. 
I am so glad that by His one offering for me 
He has done all that needs to be done for my 
salvation; and He is able to save them to the 
uttermost who come unto God by Him. My 
chief concern in life is by faith to realize His 
full salvation, and from an overflowing heart of 
love to know and do His holy will.” 

Mack Norman : “Why is it that Christian 
teachers and workers turn aside from the Gos¬ 
pel of Christ and the grand doctrines of grace 
and bring the beauties of literature, the fig¬ 
ures of rhetoric, the questions of the day, and 
the great evils and sins of the ungodly, and 
palm them off upon those whom they teach 
as the means of their salvation. Many tons of 
these materials are being substituted for the 
Gospel of Christ, and the blind lead the blind 
into deeper darkness and ruin. I have thought 
that this kind of teaching and preaching comes 
from the lack of faith in God. Surely if they 
knew the Gospel of Christ and understood the 
doctrines of grace, and had faith in God, they 
would preach the gospel as found in the Word 
of God, and depend upon the power of God to 
save the lost and lead the saved to obedience to 
Christ, instead of seeking to win men to them¬ 
selves by the wisdom of this world. They 
draw men, but not to Christ; it wins men to 


262 


The 'New Life in Christ. 


the church, but not from sin to Christ. Noth¬ 
ing but the cross of Christ proclaimed in the 
gospel can win lost and ruined souls to God; 
and nothing but the glorious doctrines of grace 
can build up believers in their most holy faith.” 

It is evident to my mind that you can tell 
very plainly the spiritual condition of preacher, 
teacher and people by the kind of preaching 
they do, or like to hear. If they are spiritually 
minded, they will dwell on the doctrines taught 
by the Word of God, and all their preaching 
will center in Christ crucified as the only way 
of salvation for poor lost sinners. But when 
they turn to secular subjects, or present Chris¬ 
tianity as a beautiful moral system, and depend 
upon the force of rhetoric and poetic beauties 
to reach the people, then it is evident that their 
spirituality is small and their faith in God is 
weak. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “The possibilities of 
faith are unlimited! ‘All things are possible 
to him that believes.’ I am more determined 
that I may live by faith, walk by faith, work 
and overcome by faith, and realize more of the 
possibilities of faith than I have ever done.” 

There are few who ever realize the full pos¬ 
sibilities of faith in their lives and work for 


Faith in God . 


263 


God. How few of us at all times realize by 
faith that we have the answer to our prayers 
when offered? and how few of us realize that 
we can and are doing all things through Christ 
who strengthens us? Then there are the as¬ 
surances of God’s Word that “they that seek 
the Lord shall not want any good thing;” and 
“no good thing will He withhold from them 
that walk uprightly.” These and many other 
passages show the blessed possibilities to those 
who trust in the Lord and lovingly obey His 
Word. There are such great blessings in faith 
and obedience, that it is strange that any 
Christian should be willing to forget the Lord 
for one hour, or neglect to read, believe and 
obey His Word. I would be glad to lead all 
with whom I come in contact to read, believe 
and obey the Bible, and have faith in God and 
be blessed of Him. 


LESSON XXI. 


CHRISTIAN ASSURANCE. 

KNOW whom I have believed, and am 
persuaded that He is able to keep 
that which I have committed unto 
Him against that day.”—2 Tim. 1:12. 

Will Harrison: “Many Christians seem 
to think that full Christian assurance is hard 
to obtain, and can be the experience of very 
few. Is this really true?” 

It seems that many live on such low plane 
of experience that they enjoy but a small de¬ 
gree of comforting assurance. I meet with 
some who seem to think that a certain degree 
of doubt is necessary to designate a true 
Christian. They dare not go beyond the ex¬ 
pression of an humble hope that they have 
been born again and are trusting Christ, and 
shall be saved. 

Neil Johnson : “Many use the words with¬ 
out understanding their real Scriptural mean¬ 
ing. I have heard some use it in the sense 
264 



Christian Assurance 


265 


of sinless perfection, and others as describ¬ 
ing mature and perfect attainments in the 
experiences of grace. What is the correct 
meaning of the term?” 

It means, full confidence or trust, freedom 
from doubt, utmost certainty of expectation; 
and in Christianity it means, full confidence 
of one’s interest in Christ, and freedom from 
doubt of final salvation. 

Miss Mary Long: a Happy experience! 
How different when one kneels to pray, and 
feels as though she was praying to nothing, 
and no one heard her bitter cry! Why is 
this? and how may it be remedied and a com¬ 
fortable assurance be obtained and kept all 
the time?” 

The Lord says: “For a small moment have 
I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will 
I gather thee. In a little wrath I hid my face 
from thee for a moment; but with everlasting 
kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the 
Lord thy Redeemer.” “The mountains shall 
depart and the hills be removed; but my 
kindness shall not depart from thee, neither 
shall the covenant of my peace be removed, 
saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.” 


266 


The New Life in Christ 


Charles Warner: “I have lived much of 
the time since I found the Lord in .darkness 
and doubt. I felt that I trusted in Christ, 
and believed in Him as the Son of God mani¬ 
fest in the flesh, and that He died for our sins; 
yet I had little assurance of my acceptance 
with God, and my hope of heaven had little 
comfort and joy in it. I would be so happy 
to have clear evidence of my acceptance in 
Christ, and to have full assurance that I am 
saved.” 

“We know that we have passed from death 
into life, because we love the brethren.” “By 
this we know that we love the children of 
God, when we love God, and keep Hiis 
commandments. For this is the love of 
God, that we keep His commandments.” 
“This is His commandment, That we should 
believe on the name of His Son Jesus 
Christ, and love one another.” “Whoso 
believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born 
of God.” “Love is of God; and everyone that 
loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.” 
“Let us not love in word, neither in tongue; 
but in deed and in truth: and hereby we 
know that we are of the truth, and shall as¬ 
sure our hearts before Him.” “God is love; 
and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, 
and God in him;” “and hereby know we that 


Christian Assurance . 


267 


we dwell in Him, and He in us, because He 
hath given us of His Spirit.” “He that keepeth 
His commandments dwelleth in Him, and He 
in him; and hereby we know that He abideth 
in us, by the Spirit which He hath given us.” 

The great trouble with many Christians is, 
they fail to yield themselves up fully to God, 
and walk in love. All Christians are the 
Lord’s property, bought by the blood of 
Christ, saved from ruin and reclaimed by the 
regenerating power of the Holy Spirit; yet 
they yield themselves not wholly up to His pos¬ 
session and use; but are in the service of the 
world, the flesh or Satan. Such find darkness 
and doubt in their spiritual lives. 

Will Harrison : “I have heard so many 
Christians speak of Christian assurance as 
an impossibility that I have been led to think 
it necessary that we have some doubts; and 
have felt that expressions of strong confidence 
in Christ, and clear knowledge of acceptance 
in Him, and salvation by Him, were indica¬ 
tions of spiritual pride and lack of true humil¬ 
ity” 

Paul could say: “I know whom I have be¬ 
lieved, and I am persuaded that He is able 
to keep that which I have committed unto 
Him against that day.” “I am now ready to 


268 


The New Life in Christ. 


be offered, and the time of my departure is 
at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have 
finished my course, I have kept the faith; 
henceforth there is laid up for me a crown 
of righteousness, which the Lord, the right¬ 
eous Judge, shall give me at that day: and 
not to me only, but unto all them also that 
love His appearing.” 

Paul knew whom he had believed, and felt 
no doubt as to His divine power, and the 
merit of His atoning death; and knowing 
that he had committed his entire self to 
Christ for time and eternity, he had no doubt 
as to His ability to keep and save him. There 
seems to have been full confidence in his be¬ 
lief, and freedom from all doubt in his trust 
in Christ and His atoning merit, and the ut¬ 
most certainty of his expectations of final 
salvation; and he seemed to feel no hesita¬ 
tion in its expression. 

Lee Wallace : “May not all Christians 
say with Paul, ‘I know whom I have believed, 
and am persuaded that He is able to keep 
that which I have committed to Him?’” 

The Lord says, “All shall know me from 
the least to the greatest. For I will be mer¬ 
ciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins 
and their iniquities will I remembeer no 


Christian Assurance . 


269 


more.” All Christians know the Lord Jesus 
and trust Him for life and salvation. If they 
understand the teachings of the word of God 
concerning Him, and yield themselves up to 
the leading of the Holy Spirit, and walk in 
love; they would be able to know more about 
Christ, and be more fully persuaded of their 
personal safety in Him. 

Mack Norman : “I am satisfied that ignor¬ 
ance of the Bible concerning Christ, and the 
failure to do what He commands is the cause 
of much of the doubt and darkness in the lives 
of Christians. They belong to Christ but keep 
Him out of practical possession and use of 
much of His property, and live unsatisfied 
and unblessed lives.” 

Paul was anxious that all Christians’ 
“hearts may be comforted, they being knit 
together in love, and unto all riches of the 
full assurance of understanding, that they 
may know the mystery of God, even Christ, 
in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and 
knowledge hidden.” Christians’ hearts are to 
be comforted by being knit together in love 
and all riches of the full assurance of under¬ 
standing, that they may know Christ as God 
manifest in the flesh. Then they will fully 
understand that God was in Christ reconcil- 


270 


The New Life in Christ. 


mg the world unto Himself; and that Christ 
4 s our substitute obeyed the law for us, and 
then bore the punishment for our sins, and 
made full atonement for them, and that we 
are complete in Him. 

Burt Norman : “The Bible teaches the way 
of salvation so plainly that all ought to be 
able to see and know that Christ is the Son 
of God, that He died for our sins and rose for 
our justification, and is exalted at the right 
hand of God to intercede for us. We ought to 
be able to know that all who believe in Him 
are saved, have eternal life, and are complete 
in Him.” 

It teaches, that in Christ dwells the full¬ 
ness of the Godhead bodily, and of His full¬ 
ness have all we received, and are complete in 
Him. The Christian lives by His life and has 
eternal life in Christ; so he is complete in life 
in Christ. By virtue of his 'union by faith 
with Christ the righteousness of Christ is im¬ 
puted to him, and he is justified by faith 
through the perfect righteousness of Christ. 
Christ is also made unto him sanctification, 
which will be complete at last. 

Christ’s strength is made perfect in his 
weakness; and as the branch draws from the 
vine, so may he draw strength, and all he 
needs from Him. 


Christian Assurance. 


2711 


In Christ’s perfect righteousness and aton¬ 
ing merit he has complete access to the Father, 
and may come boldly to His rich throne of 
grace, and obtain mercy, and find grace to 
help in times of need. 

Hattie Warner: “That was my mistake. 
I did not come with full faith in Christ, trust¬ 
ing to His merit alone for access to God. I 
failed to realize that .in Him, and by His 
merit, I had perfect access to the presence of 
God.” 

We have liberty by the blood of Jesus to 
enter heaven. “Having therefore, brethren, 
boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood 
of Jesus * * Let us draw near with a true heart 
in full assurance of faith, having our hearts 
sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our 
bodies washed with pure water.” We have 
boldness to enter into the holiest of all only 
by the blood of Jesus; and we have perfect 
liberty to draw near to God in prayer, praise 
and worship in full assurance of faith, with 
our hearts cleansed from all guilt by the 
blood of Jesus. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “Tlie more fully we 
understand that God was manifest in the 
flesh in Christ, and that His atoning death 


272 


The New Life in Christ. 


made full satisfaction for all our sins, and 
that His resurrection and exaltation at the 
right hand of God secures the full results 
of His death; the more completely confident 
will be our faith in Him; and our trust, as 
we look to the power of His atoning blood to 
cleanse from all sin, will be more complete.” 

Yes, “Full assurance of faith,” or complete 
and undoubting belief and confident trust, 
come from full assurance of understanding. 
“Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the 
word of God.” When fully understanding by 
faith the mystery of God, even Christ mani¬ 
fest in the flesh, dying for our sins, and recon¬ 
ciling us to God; it surely ought not be dif¬ 
ficult to believe that such infinite merit and 
glorious holiness, as this of the Son of God 
manifest in the flesh, have power to put away 
all the guilt of our sins forever. Nor that 
such sufferings as His and such sinless blood 
can and do wash away our guilt, and bring 
us to God completely saved. With a full in¬ 
terest in all His infinite fullness of worthi¬ 
ness., merit, righteousness and power, we ought 
to be able to draw near to God in full con¬ 
fidence, and find complete access to Him; and 
obtain grace and help to live and labor for 
His glory. To ask what we will in Christ’s 


Ch) istian Assurance. 


273 


name, and believe- that we receive it, that our 
joy may be full. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “It is so glorious to 
realize that we have complete access to the 
Father through Christ! I think now that I 
shall never more feel that I am praying, and 
no one is hearing my bitter cry; for by faith 
in Christ I have in Him and His atoning merit 
complete access to God, and perfect liberty to 
come to Him and obtain help in all my need. 
Jesus is the vine, and I am a branch in Him, 
drawing from His infinite fullness all I need.” 

In Christ dwells all the fullness of the God¬ 
head bodily, and of His fullness have all we 
received, and are complete in Him. By faith 
believers are one with Christ, and receive of 
His life, His righteousness, His power and 
merit, and live from Him as the branch does 
from the vine. Realizing these blessings in 
Christ, Christians may not only experience 
the full assurance of faith, but they may at¬ 
tain to the full assurance of hope. 

Lee Wallace : “Hope is composed of de¬ 
sire and expectation; and full assurance of 
hope includes full confidence of one’s interest 
in Christ and freedom from doubt as to final 

salvation.” 

18 


274 The New Life in Christ. 

“I am persuaded that He is able to keep 
that which I have committed unto Him 
against that day.” Full assurance of hope 
rests upon full understanding and belief of 
the truth, and firm trust in Christ. “Faith 
is the assurance of things hoped for, the prov¬ 
ing of things not seen.” 

Miss Mary Long: “I can not see any sim¬ 
ilarity between Christian assurance and Sec¬ 
ond Blessing Perfection. It seems to me that 
all new creatures who live the new life by 
faith in Christ, might have full confidence of 
their interest in Christ, and of their final sal¬ 
vation by Him.” 

Truly all who know the Lord ought to be 
able to exercise full trust in Him, and have 
full confidence in His word and promises. He 
says, that all who believe in Him shall not 
perish, but shall be saved and shall have eter¬ 
nal life. “He that believeth on the Son hath 
everlasting life.” 

Burt Norman: “It is easy to know that 
we believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and 
that we lovingly trust Him as our Savior. 
We ought also to be able to realize the wit¬ 
ness of the Holy Spirit with our spirits that 


Christian Assurance . 


275 


we are the children of God. Then our new 
lives ought to prove that we are saved.” 

We can but know that we love and trust in 
Christ, and that we love the brethren. “The 
Spirit Himself beareth witness with our spir¬ 
its that we are the children of God.” “Ye 
have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby 
we cry Abba, Father.” The Spirit also makes 
us new creatures and enables us to live new 
lives, and by these new lives give us to know 
that we have eternal life. “God hath given 
unto us eternal life, and this life is in the 
Son. He that hath the Son, hath life.” 

Lee Wallace : “I have felt for some time 
that there must be some higher planes of 
Christian experience than many of us reach. 
Surely the worldly lives of many, their doubt¬ 
ing and doubtful living, and lack of spirit¬ 
uality, is not the best that Christianity can 
produce.” 

There are mountains in Christian life and 
experience; yet many live in the low lands 
of disobedience, and doubt and sin. Yet they 
feel sure there is something better than they 
have reached, and they long to explore these 
mountains of Christian knowledge, experi¬ 
ences of grace and spirituality; also the 
mountains of power, faith and hope. 


276 


The New Life in Christ. 


Mack Norman: “How strange that so 
many Christians consent to live on the low 
planes of selfishness, worldliness and sin, 
while there are such mountains of peace, joy, 
power and usefulness in the full service of 
God. If I know my heart, I purpose to yield 
myself up wholly to the Lord, to be His and 
do His will.” 

“Ye are not your own; for ye are bought 
with a price.” “One is your Master, even 
Christ, and all ye are brethren.” “Ye are not 
of the world, but I have chosen you out of 
the world, therefore the world hateth you.” 
Those who have been born into a new life 
have different aims, motives and hopes. They 
have been bought from the slavery of sin and 
ruin with the precious blood of Christ; and 
have given themselves to Christ to be saved 
and used by Him. Yet many fail to give 
themselves up wholly to Him in practical 
every day life. They are His; but keep Him 
out of the use of His property, by yielding 
themselves up to Satan’s use, living worldly, 
selfish, sinful lives. They are all willing to 
yield themselves to Him to be saved by Him; 
and they should be equally willing to be used 
by Him. He is Lord and Master as well as 
Savior; and we should practically give our¬ 
selves to Him, with all that we are, and have, 


Christian Assurance. 


277 


and can do. We ought, in love, to be moved 
by the mercies of God, to present our “bodies 
a living sacrifice holy, acceptable unto God, 
which is your reasonable service.” 

Neil Johnson : “I have been led to dis¬ 
trust Christian assurance, because those who 
are in error seem to be more confident of 
their safety than any others. There are some 
who go up to the very door expecting to get 
in, and are disappointed; and we are taught 
to Tear, lest a promise being left us of enter¬ 
ing into His rest, any of you should seem to 
come short of it.’ We are to take warning 
from the experience of others.” 

That is all true; and none seem so blindly 
confident as those who are deceived. It is a 
bad indication when any are unwilling to ex¬ 
amine themesvles, if they are in the faith; 
and to compare their beliefs and experiences 
with the word of God. Our confidence is to 
be in Christ and His word, and in the prom¬ 
ises of God. Those who were so fearfully 
disappointed made their mistake by not un¬ 
derstanding the Scriptures, and expected to 
be saved by their works. Paul expected to be 
saved by Christ through His atoning merit 
and infinite power. 


278 


The New Life hi Christ. 


Burt Norman : “The foundation* upon 
which our hopes rest constitutes the differ¬ 
ence between the false and true confidence. 
We are not to cast away our confidence in 
Christ because some build their confidence up¬ 
on other foundation.” 

We should only fear to the extent that we 
make sure ours is upon the rock. Some build 
their hope of salvation upon their own works, 
and are sure to fail; while others build upon 
Christ and His atoning merit, and their con¬ 
fidence can never fail. 

Will Harrison : “Christian works are 
never mentioned in the Bible as the founda¬ 
tion of the hope of salvation; but only as true 
evidence of a saved state.” 

“Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, 
Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; 
but he that doeth the will of my Father which 
is in heaven. Many will say to me in that 
day. Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in 
thy name? and in thy name have cast out 
devils? and in thy name done many wonderful 
works? Then will I profess unto them, I 
never knew you; depart from me, ye that 
work iniquity.” 


Christian Assurance. 


279 


Neil Johnson: “There is great difference 
between doing many wonderful works, and do¬ 
ing the will of the Father.” 

Those who depend upon their wonderful 
works have spent their lives doing works of 
iniquity, and had never known Christ as their 
Savior. 

Those who do the will of God are such as 
have been saved by grace through faith in 
Christ, and by the help of the Spirit know 
and do the divine will. None can please God 
without faith, and none can know and do the 
will of God without faith in Christ. The will 
of the heavenly Father is revealed in His 
word, and requires belief in God and His 
words, and faith in Christ and obedience to 
His commands. All who do the Father’s will, 
trust Christ for salvation, and obey Him from 
love; while those who are disappointed de¬ 
pend upon their wonderful works for salva¬ 
tion, and live strangers to God, and spend 
their time working iniquity. 

Neil Johnson : “It is so easy to distin¬ 
guish between the true and the false founda¬ 
tions of assurance, and it is strange that any 
one should use the disappointment of those 
who build upon the false, as an objection to 


280 The New Life in Clvrist . 

the assurance of those who build upon the 
true foundation.” 

That is true. Yet many point to the blind 
confidence of the deceived, and seem to think 
that the utter failure of their false hopes af¬ 
ford sufficient ground for doubt to those who 
build upon the true. We need only make sure 
that we are building upon Christ and Him 
crucified, and that we are doing in our lives 
the will of the Father. 

Will Harrison : “I find that true Chris¬ 
tian assurance is not a blind confidence; but 
has the light of the ‘riches of full assurance 
of understanding,’ of the word of God to guide 
to the full assurance of Christian faith and 
hope.” 

All who do the commands of Christ shall 
know of the doctrine; and they need not be 
deceived. If love to Christ constrains us to 
obey Him; and our new natures and charac¬ 
ters and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit 
lead us to live new lives, and to delight in do¬ 
ing the revealed will of the Father, we may 
be sure that our assurance is not vain, and 
will not end in disappointment. 

Miss Mary Long: “It seems to me that the 
most satisfactory assurance is found in a true 


Christian Assurance. 


281 


Scriptural Christian experience. Our own ex¬ 
periences of pardon, peace and acceptance with 
God ought to supply a pretty strong certainty 
of one’s interest in Christ and final salvation 
by Him.” 

There is room for a strong and very sweet 
assurance in the personal experience of every 
true believer in Christ. They, have tasted and 
seen that the Lord is good, and are happy trust¬ 
ing in Him. When Paul saw and knew Christ 
as the Son of God he committed himself to Him 
to be saved and kept; and from that moment 
he was satisfied that Christ did save and keep 
him. From that hour Christ was his life; he 
had died with Him, risen with Him, suffered, 
worked and triumphed in Him. Christ w T as 
more real to him and personally present with 
him than any one else. He lived for Christ, 
and Christ lived in him and worked through 
him. His personal knowledge of Christ, knowl¬ 
edge and belief of the truth, and personal ex¬ 
periences of His grace gave him full certainty, 
and enabled him to say: “I know whom I have 
believed, and I am persuaded that He is able 
to keep that which I have committed to Him 
against that day,” “We are confident and 
willing rather to be absent from the body and 
to be present with the Lord,” Also, “having 


282 The New Life in Christ. 

a desire to depart, and to be with Christ, which 
is far better.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “That is the kind of 
Christian life I have so wished to live. I want 
always to be confident of acceptance in Christ; 
and to realize by sweet experience the con¬ 
sciousness of His presence, support and salva¬ 
tion, and to realize that I am in Christ and he 
in me forming my character and working 
through my life.” 

This is the only real satisfying assurance; 
and it is the true Scriptural means of realizing 
it. “He that abideth in me and I in him, the 
same brings forth much fruit; for without me 
ye can do nothing.” “He that hath my com¬ 
mandments and keepeth them, he it is that 
loveth me; and he that loveth me shall be loved 
of my Father, and I will love him, and will 
manifest myself to him.” “If a man love me, 
he will keep my words, and my Father will 
love him, and we will come unto him, and make 
our abode with him.” Loving obedience to 
Christ’s words is the condition of His and the 
Father’s special love, manifestation and abid¬ 
ing presence. Abide in Christ by conscious 
faith and communion, let His words abide in 
us richly, and constrained by His love let us 


Christian Assurance . 


283 


keep His commandments, and we will be con* 
scious of his constant indwelling presence. 

Lee Wallace : “There seems to be three 
things essential to a true Scriptural assur¬ 
ance: a clear spiritual knowledge and under¬ 
standing of the truth, a strong faith, and a 
full, loving obedience to Christ. These fully 
experienced, it seems to me, would result in 
a full, happy assurance.” 

“Faith is the assurance of things hoped for.” 
A strong faith in Christ, and undoubting belief 
of His words, will bring freedom from doubt 
as to one’s interest in Christ, and a full con¬ 
fidence as to final salvation. Paul had no 
doubt that, “to depart” was to “be with Christ, 
which is far better.” He was free from doubt 
that, “Henceforth there is laid up for me a 
crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the 
righteous judge, shall give me at that day.” 

Miss Mary Long: “I am so rejoiced to know 
that we are saved now by grace and not wait¬ 
ing in hope to be saved some time in the fu¬ 
ture.” 

Yes, “By grace are ye saved through faith.” 
This is a present salvation. Possessed and en¬ 
joyed now, and not simply hoped for in time 
to come. 


284 


The New Life in Christ. 


Through faith in Christ the believer has the 
forgiveness of sins, peace with God, justifi¬ 
cation and eternal life. Christ, as God mani¬ 
fest in the flesh, obeyed the holy law for us, 
and as our Substitute, had the punishment of 
our sins laid upon Him, and by His obedience 
and sufferings, wrought out for us a full and 
absolutely perfect righteousness. This right¬ 
eousness is imputed to every one who exercises 
faith in Christ. The moment a sinner trusts 
Christ to save him, that moment he is accepted 
in Christ and is saved. Faith unites the believ¬ 
er to Christ and makes him one with Him; and 
by virtue of this union His sins are all blotted 
out, and he is gloriously saved by grace. His 
sins-are all forgiven, he shall never come into 
condemnation, and already he has eternal life 
through faith in Christ. He is saved now. 

Neil Johnson : “None can rejoice in a pres¬ 
ent and perfect salvation who depend upon 
their works in any sense to save them.” 

It is through grace alone that any one can 
rejoice in a present and perfect salva¬ 
tion. Although fully assured of salva¬ 
tion to-day, yet if works be trusted 
they may come short and he fall away 
and perish to-morrow. As a man in mid-ocean 
who has climbed upon a floating timber and is 


Christian Assurance. 


285 


safe; yet is in danger that the next large billow 
will wash him off and he will be drowned in the 
sea. When saved by grace through faith he 
is rescued and placed in Christ, from under the 
law under grace, out of death into life, far 
above the power of the law and of sin to con¬ 
demn. He is saved by grace through faith, and 
is forever safe in Christ. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “If we would realize 
the joys of this salvation we must yield our¬ 
selves up fully to the Lord.” 

Yes, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace 
whose mind is stayed on thee; because he trust- 
eth in thee.” If we yield ourselves up fully to 
Christ, and ask Him, He will enter our hearts 
and lives, and will fill us with unspeakable 
peace. 


LESSON NXII. 


MORE THAN CONQUERORS. 

N all these things we are more than con¬ 
querors through Him that loved us.”—• 
Rom. 8:37. 

“Thanks be to God, which giveth us 
the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”— 
1 Cor. 15:57. 

“Thanks be unto God, which always causeth 
us to triumph in Christ.”—2 Cor. 2:14. 

Albert Edwards : “It has seemed to me im¬ 
possible for a Christian to overcome the world, 
the flesh and the devil and to always triumph 
over them. Much of my life has been lived un¬ 
der their combined power; and it seems that 
many professors are ignorant as I have been of 
this overcoming conquering power.”* 

Yes, many professed Christians live as 
though they believe that they are compelled to 
submit to the rule of their enemies. Some live 
for years under the power of drunkenness, or 
anger, or worldliness, and never realize the 
glorious victory given them in Christ over all 
286 



More Than Conquerors . 


287 


foes. Some are in bondage all their lives to 
the fear of death. 

Burt Norman : “Why do so many believers 
fail to realize this continued victory? It is 
God who gives us the victory, makes us more 
than conquerors, and causeth always to tri¬ 
umph in Christ.” 

Our defeats come from our failure to believe 
and obey Christ. “For if ye do these things, 
ye shall never fall.” The Lord uses means to 
accomplish His ends, and we will find all of 
our victories and triumphs in Christ by faith 
and loving obedience to His commands. 

Miss Mary Long: “By what means can we 
always overcome the old habits of our past 
lives and meet and conquer the strong, hidden 
foes of our spiritual lives?” 

“Be strong in the Lord and in the power of 
His might. Put on the whole armour of God, 
that ye may be able to stand against the wiles 
of the devil.” “Wherefore take unto you the 
whole armour of God, that ye may be able to 
withstand in the evil day, and having done all, 
to stand.” 

God has provided for our strength and vic¬ 
tory, and we have only to take and use the 


288 


The New Life in Christ. 


means He has prepared and thereby do all and 
stand more than conquerors through Christ. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “Explain the armour 
which the King has provided and requires all 
Christians to put on that they may be able 
to do all and stand.” 

“Stand, therefore, having your loins girt 
about with truth, and having on the breast¬ 
plate of righteousness; and your feet shod with 
the preparation of the gospel of peace; above 
all taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye 
shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the 
wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and 
the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of 
God: praying always with all prayer and sup¬ 
plication in the Spirit, and watching there¬ 
unto with all perseverance and supplication 
for all saints.” 

Lee Wallace: “What is meant by having 
your loins girt about with truth? I under¬ 
stand perfectly the reference to the old Roman 
armour, and their heavy girdles about the 
loins; but in what way is the Christian girt 
about with truth?” 

Truth is simple reality; and it is known in 
Christianity only from the Word of God. “Thy 


More Than Conquerors. 


289 


word is truth.” We have our loins girt about 
with it when we know the word of God, believe 
and live it. We should study to know the Bi¬ 
ble, and seek the help of the Holy Spirit that 
we may understand, believe and live by the 
word of God. Many are not sufficiently care¬ 
ful to know the truth, and others fail to faith¬ 
fully do all it says do. To put on the girdle 
includes the knowing, believing and living the 
truth. All should seek to know what is real, 
and especially so in Christianity. 

Miss Mary Long : “This is a very important 
part of the Christian armour; for the belief and 
the dependence upon error, or the unreal, 
brings great trouble and disaster. I would 
have been totally and hopelessly lost, depend¬ 
ing upon the law and my poor sinful works for 
salvation. It is truly safe to have one’s soul 
girt about with truth, and to live a true, real, 
saved life! I am so happy to know the real 
divine way to be saved! How do we put on 
the breastplate of righteousness?” 

The breastplate protected the heart and the 
vital parts of the body; so does absolute and 
perfect righteousness protect the believer. But 
we can find this perfect righteousness alone in 
Christ, who came as our Substitute, obeyed 
the law perfectly, and then bore the penalty of 

19 


290 


The New Life in Christ. 


our sin, and died in our stead. This perfect 
righteousness of Christ is imparted to, or put 
to the account of all who believe in Christ. In 
this way Christ is made unto them righteous¬ 
ness, and in Him they are righteous even as He 
is righteous. They have on the breastplate of 
righteousness by faith in Christ. The Holy 
Spirit also imparts to them the righteousness 
of Christ by making them like Christ, and 
conforming them to His likeness. This is ac¬ 
complished as new creatures yield themselves 
up to the Holy Spirit. 

Will Harrison: “I have often wondered 
what was meant by having ‘the feet shod by the 
preparation of the gospel of peace/ A lame 
soldier, who can scarcely stand on his feet, 
would not be able to do good fighting. How 
does the gospel of peace protect our feet?” 

It is very important for a Christian to realize 
his peace with God in the pardon of sins and 
full reconciliation to God through faith in 
Christ, to prepare him to stand against the 
foe, as well as to labor for souls. It consists 
of peace with God by being justified by faith, 
and by full surrender to God, and by being 
filled with the Holy Spirit. Jesus says: “Peace 
I leave with you, my peace I give unto you.” 
“These things I have spoken unto,jou that in 


More Than Conquerors. 


291 


me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall 
have tribulation; but be of good cheer: I have 
overcome the world.” We need to realize this 
perfect peace in order to prepare us for real 
efficient service for souls, as well as to help us 
meet the foe. In this perfect peace we can 
realize “that God was in Christ reconciling the 
world unto Himself, also, “as though God 
did beseech you by us; we pray you in Christ’s 
stead, be ye reconciled unto God.” 

Neil Johnson: “The shield of faith is a 
wonderful protection. We ought to take it all 
the time.” 

“Above all taking the shield of faith, where¬ 
with ye shall be able to quench all the fiery 
darts of the wicked.” Belief in God, and that 
His word and promises are true, and a firm, un¬ 
yielding trust in Christ, supply the believer 
with great protection. By faith he will be 
able to quench or put out all the burning darts 
of the wicked. 

Miss Mary Long : “What is meant by the hel¬ 
met of salvation?” 

Live realizing that ye are saved by grace 
through faith in Christ, and that “iliere is 
therefore now no condemnation to them that 


292 The New Life in Christ . 

are in Christ.” Then keep this helmet on by 
living through faith a saved life all the time. 
Live in Christ and let Him so live in you that 
you will realize that Christ dwells in you and 
works through you, as well as lives in your 
life. 

Mack Norman: “I wmnt to take the sword 
of the Spirit, which is the w-ord of God. The 
sword hangs on the girdle, wdiich is the truth; 
and if we continue in His words w r e shall know r 
the truth, and have the swmrd ever ready for 
use. The better w 7 e know the Bible and believe 
and obey it, the more surely are Tve protected/' 

Then w^e are reminded that w^e are to pray 
“alw’ays with all prayer and supplication in 
the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all 
perseverance and supplication for all saints.” 

This is the whole armour of God, wiiich we 
are commanded to put on and wear in order 
to withstand in the evil day, and to do all and 
stand victorious through our Lord. Without 
it we are utterly unable to be strong in the 
Lord .and to triumph in Christ. There is no 
protection for the back because their safety 
lies in facing the foe, and the soldier is not 
expected to turn his back. 

Neil Johnson: “There are many Christians 
who have been wounded in the back. They are 


More Than Conquerors. 


293 


wounded by turning back from duty and by go¬ 
ing into disobedience.’’ 

It is only by unbelief and disobedience that 
God’s peopel are wounded. Balaam found 
that “God is not a man that He should lie; 
neither the Son of man, that he should repent: 
hath He said, and shall He not do it? or hath 
he spoken, and shall He not make it good? Be¬ 
hold, I have received commandment to bless: 
and He hath blessed and I cannot reverse it.” 
Yet when he saw the safety of Israel under 
the protection of the Lord, he taught their en¬ 
emies to lead them into disobedience and there¬ 
by work their hurt. 

Will Harrison : “God gives us the victory 
and makes us always to triumph in Christ; 
but apart from Him we can do nothing. Our 
failures come when we are living at too great 
a distance from Christ.” 

There is no failure in Christ. He is omnipo¬ 
tent, and is exalted above all principalities and 
powers, and all who live in Him will overcome 
by Him. All who are in Christ are justified by 
His righteousness, accepted in His merit, 
cleansed by His blood, live by His life, made 
strong and victorious by His power, have ac¬ 
cess through His atoning merit and His own 


294 


The New Life in Christ. 


glorious person. Being united to Him, and 
one with Him, they are more than conquerors 
through Him, and are made always to triumph 
in Him. 

Miss Mary Long : “It is wonderfully strange 
that all new creatures have the right to such 
a gloriously victorious life in Christ, and so 
many realize so little of its triumphs! I have 
been filled with amazement as I have contem¬ 
plated that God makes us more than conquer 
ors, able to do all and stand, and always 
causes us to triumph. I purpose from this 
time to trust Christ for full salvation, for keep¬ 
ing and for victorious living/ 

Neil Johnson: “We have the victory over 
sin in Christ by justification and the new life.” 

Yes, by faith in Christ we have forgiveness 
of sins and are justified and shall never come 
into condemnation. “There is therefore now 
no condemnation to them which are in Christ 
Jesus/’ “Christ is the end of the law for right¬ 
eousness to every one that believeth.” “Sin 
shall not have dominion over you; for ye are 
not under the law, but under grace/’ Then also 
having been made alive to God by the new 
birth, as well as dead to sin, and having 
been “made free from sin, ye became the 


More Than Conquerors. 


295 


servants of righteousness.” “If ye through the 
Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye 
shall live.” 

Mack Norman : “Believers are the children 
of God, as new creatures, and are heirs of God 
and joint heirs with Christ: does this mean 
that they shall share His glorious victory over 
all things?” 

“That we may be also glorified together.” 
Christ suffered and then entered into His glory, 
and the sufferings of Christians are nothing 
in comparison to the glory which shall be re¬ 
vealed in them. “Nay, in all these things we 
are more than conquerors through Him that 
loved us.” 

Burt Norman : “ ‘Seek ye first the kingdom 
of God and His righteousness; and all these 
things shall be .added unto you/ In this way 
Christians are to triumph over the worries 
about the things of this life.” 

“Be anxious for nothing; but in everything 
by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving 
let your requests be made unto God.” “Take 
no thought,” or be not anxious, either for food 
or raiment, because your heavenly Father, who 
feeds the birds and clothes the grass, knows 


296 


The New Life in Christ . 


that ye have need of all these things and shall 
much more clothe and feed you. 

Albert Edwards : “There are times when it 
is easy to seek first the kingdom of God and His 
righteousness, and then again it is hard to keep 
from troubling about the necessities of life. 
It is easy at times to live close to God and do 
His will, and then the flesh and Satan seem 
to have all the control. Why is this true, if we 
have this constant victory in Christ ?” 

We are commanded to crucify the flesh, to 
keep the body dnder, to rule the spirit, and to 
keep the heart with all diligence. “Let not 
sin therefore reign in your mortal bodies that 
you should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither 
yield ye your members as instruments of un¬ 
righteousness unto sin; but yield yourselves 
unto God, as those that are alive from the 
dead, and your members as . instruments of 
righteousness unto God.” “Know ye not that 
to whom ye yield yourselves servants to 
obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; 
whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto 
righteousness? But God be thanked that ye 
were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed 
from the heart that form of doctrine which was 
delivered unto you. Being then made free 
from sin, ye became the servants of righteous- 


More Than Conquerors. 


297 


ness.” It is mainly a question of personal 
yielding and voluntary service. It is a matter 
to be* settled by each one as to letting sin reign 
in his body, or yielding his members as instru¬ 
ments to sin or to God. It is a voluntary 
matter, “For sin shall not have dominion over 
you: for ye are not under the law, but under 
grace.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “Why is it that so 
many professed Christians manifest so little 
spirituality? If all new creatures would live 
new lives, and manifest the Spirit, power and 
life of Christ, there would be no excuse left 
men to doubt Christianity.” 

Satan likes to have his servants join the 
churches and wield a large influence for bad. 
An unregenerated man in the church becomes 
a standing libel on Christianity. His ungodly 
life, worldly, selfish, unspiritual acts and 
character are placed before the world as all 
that Christianity can do to make men pure 
and Christ-like. It misrepresents the power 
of Christ to save and make pure. 

Then many who are really new creatures, are 
babes in Christ, and are yet undeveloped. They 
“walk as men,” rather than as Christians, and 
have failed to put off the old man, which is cor¬ 
rupt according to the deceitful lusts ; and have 


298 


The New Life in Christ. 


not been renewed in the spirit of their minds, 
and “put on the new man, which after God is 
created in righteousness and true holiness.” 
“Till we all come into the unity of the faith, 
and of the knowledeg of the Son of God, unto 
a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature 
of the fullness of Christ.” “But speaking the 
truth in love, may grow up into Him in all 
things, which is the head, even Christ/ 

Miss Mary Long : “I find that there is much 
for the saved to do, although they are not 
saved by works, and they can do these only as 
the saved by being in Christ and receiving of 
His infinite fullness.” 

Till we all come into the unity of the faith, 
the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a per¬ 
fect man, the measure of the stature of the full¬ 
ness of Chrisrt, and grow up into Him in all 
things. Here is glorious triumph in growth 
and. spiritual attainments by the use of the 
means supplied in Christ. 

Lee Wallace : “I am delighted with the 
possibilities taught in this lesson as to the full 
victory of believers in Christ, and that He 
makes us always to triumph in Christ. I have 
been anxiously searching for the means for 
reaching this state. I am truly glad that God 


More Than Conquerors. 


299 


gives it to us in Christ, and that we may ob- . 
tain it by abiding in Him and obeying His 
words.” 

Neil Johnson : “This victory includes the 
victory over one’s own self, as well as all other 
enemies. ‘I keep my body under/ ‘I have 
learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to 
be content/ and ‘most gladly therefore will I 
rather glory in my infirmities, that the power 
of Christ may rest upon me.’ But this is pos¬ 
sible only in Christ, who said to him, ‘My grace 
is sufficient for thee; for my strength is made 
perfect in weakness.’ ” 

All new creatures who “were baptized into 
Jesus Christ, were baptized into His death. 
Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism 
into death; that like as Christ was raised up 
from the dead by the glory of the Father, even 
so we also should walk in newness of life.” 
All who have died and been buried, have nothing 
more to do with the things of this life; so have 
believers died with Christ unto sin, as set forth 
by baptism, and have been buried to their old 
lives and are raised to walk in a new life with 
Christ. They were planted in the likeness of 
Christ’s death, and raised up in the likeness of 
His resurrection, and shall live with Him in 
His glorious victory over sin and freedom from 


300 The New Life in Christ . 

its power and condemnation. They were 
united to Him and Were one with Him in His 
death to sin, burial and resurrection, and shall 
be one with Him in His gloriously victorious 
life. 

Miss Mary Long: “How is it possible for 
one who knows that Christian baptism repre¬ 
sents our union with Christ in His death, 
burial and resurrection, to be willing to 
yield himself up to live in sin? ‘Buried with 
Him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen 
with Him through the faith of the operation of 
God, who hath raised Him from the dead.’ I 
can never forget that as I was raised up out of 
the water, so I have been raised to a new spirit¬ 
ual and everlasting life.” 

Alas! many fail to understand the Scriptural 
meaning of this burial with Christ. A Presby¬ 
terian lawyer said the other day, that we Bap¬ 
tists idolize the act of immersion, and it 
should be broken to pieces and not allowed to 
exist, as Hezekiah broke in pieces the brazen 
serpent. I told him ,that he failed entirely to 
understand the Scriptural meaning of being 
buried with Christ by baptism; and would take 
from us the privilege of lovingly setting forth 
by symbol the glorious fact that we have died 
with Christ to sin and the old ungodly life, 


More Than Conquerors. 


301 


and have been resurrected with Him to a new 
life. We are dead and buried to the old life 
of sin and condemnation; but have been raised 
to a new spiritual life. As new creatures in 
Christ we have eternal life, shall never come 
into condemnation, but have passed out of death 
into life. Have a new destiny, new hopes, new 
aims, new purposes, tastes and joys; and are 
living new lives in the service of Christ. We 
are walking in newness of life in the likeness 
of Christ’s risen life of victory. 

Will Harrison: “When I consider the glo¬ 
rious meaning of being baptized with Christ 
into the likeness of His death and resurrection, 
I feel that I would gladly give up all again 
and follow Him fully.” 

There was a man who found the treasure in 
the field, “and for joy thereof goeth and selleth 
all that he hath, and buyeth that field.” Some 
seem slow to find out the great value of the 
treasure of salvation and the new life, and are 
slow to feel the joy thereof which moves them 
to put all they have into this life. 

Miss Hattie Warner : ‘ “I find that it is 
only in Christ that I can triumph at all in any¬ 
thing. Apart from him I am weak and can do 
nothing.” 


302 


The New Life in Christ. 


The branch can bear fruit only by abiding in 
the vine. We are conquerors through Christ, 
and we triumph in Him. Faith and loving 
obedience with believing prayer will enable 
us to abide in Him, in whom “dwells all the 
fullness of the Godhead bodily, and ye are com¬ 
plete in Him.” 


LESSON XXIII. 


ALL THINGS NEW. 

F ANY man be in Christ, he is a new 
creature; old things have passed away: 
behold all things have become new.”— 
2 Cor. 5:17. 

“Therefore we are buried with Christ by 
baptism into death; that like as He was raised 
from the dead by the glory of the Father, even 
so we also should walk in newness of life.”— 
Rom. 6 :4. 

Albert Edwards: “From these Scripture 
references it seems that all who are in Christ 
live new lives. How is it then that so many 
of them go into sin, and suffer so much from 
darkness and doubts, and lose the joy of sal¬ 
vation ?” 

The believer in Christ is a new creature, and 
has a new nature, destiny, tastes and motives 
of life. If he sins, he does it under the pro¬ 
test of his new nature; and is plunged into 

303 



304 


The New Life in Christ . 


darkness and misery because lie is a new creat¬ 
ure, and loves God and hates sin. He has been 
raised from spiritual death into spiritual life; 
and while he has had the new nature implanted 
in him; yet the old nature remains in its hatred 
of God and love of sin. 

Henry Warner: “What is the new destiny 
of the believer in Christ? How is he saved 
from condemnation and wrath, when he goes 
into sin and does things which condemn un¬ 
believers ?” 

The moment a sinner believes in Christ and 
trusts Him as his Savior, the same moment he 
is pardoned, justified, and saved. God regards 
him in Christ as covered by His perfect right¬ 
eousness, and treats him as though he had never 
sinned. All his sins have been put away by the 
atoning merit of the blood and death of Christ, 
and he is made righteous in Christ as He is 
righteous. God regards and treats him as 
though he had never sinned; because all his 
sins have been put to the account of Christ, 
who has suffered their punishment; and the 
righteousness of Christ is put to the believer’s 
account, and he is treated as though it were 
his own. “So Christ was once offered to bear 
the sins of many.” “This man after He had 
offered one sacrifice for sin forever.” “For by 


All Things New. 


305 


one offering He hath perfected forever them 
that are sanctified.” “Wherefore being justi¬ 
fied by faith we have peace with God through 
our Lord Jesus Christ.” “There is therefore 
now no condemnation to them which are in 
Christ Jesus.” 

Lee Wallace : “All Christians realize the 
new tastes, motives and purposes which move 
them to give up sin and live for Christ.” 

The new birth causes one to love God 
and hate sin, the love of Christ constrains 
him to know and do His will. The Holy Spirit 
quickens, guides. 1 , leads, and fills his life with 
love, joy, peace, and all spiritual blessings. 
As a child of God he shall never perish; but 
has eternal life, and a destiny of glory. He 
shall be made like Christ, and live with Him 
forever in heavenly glory. 

Neil Johnson: “Truly all things have be¬ 
come new, and old things have passed away. 
These new tastes, motives, and principles, with 
the rich supplies of grace by the indwelling 
of the Holy Spirit, must of necessity produce 
a new life in the believer.” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “This has been true 
in my experience; for while I lived in sin, I 


306 


The New Life in Christ. 


was filled with sorrow, darkness, and great 
unrest; because of the loss of peace with God, 
and His conscious presence. In my ungodly 
life I had no thought nor care about God; and 
lived mainly to please myself. After my heart 
was changed these sinful, selfish pleasures 
failed to satisfy my soul. I shudder now as 
I remember how I lived in darkness, feeling 
that God was a long way off, and that I was 
talking to nothing when I tried to pray. But 
it is so joyful now to realize that my Lord is 
always present with me, and that I am in 
Christ and fully saved by Him. I dearly love 
to constantly yield myself up to His will, and 
by faith and obedience to His words to abide 
in Christ, as the branch in the vine, and glorify 
the Father by bearing much fruit.” 

Miss Mary Long: “The wonderful riches 
of grace in Christ are sufficient to enable the 
believer to live a true life and bear much fruit. 
No one who has experienced the all sufficiency 
of the grace in Christ can ever look to His 
own poor works or to the law for salvation. 
It is so glorious to realize that we are saved 
by grace through faith in Christ!” 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I have been think¬ 
ing what a wonderful life a Christian might 
live, if he would yield himself up wholly to 


All Things New. 


307 


the will of God, and would use all the fullness 
of Christ which is possible to him by faith.” 


The believer is in living union with Christ, 
and as the branch draws from the fullness of 
the vine, so he may by conscious faith re¬ 
ceive all he will use from the infinite fullness 
of Christ. Such lives are indeed wonderful! 
Being washed in the precious blood of Christ, 
and justified by faith, he is free from all con¬ 
demnation. Through this perfect union with 
Christ, he not only has eternal life and shall 
never perish, but may receive perpetual sup¬ 
plies of life, spirituality, righteousness, and 
power to enable him to triumph over the world, 
the flesh, and Satan. 

Will Harrison : “I am happy to realize 
that I may receive from the infinite fullness of 
Christ all I need, and can use! The branch 
draws unconsciously by using the supplies of 
the vine, while I may consciously receive of the 
fullness of Christ all I will use.” 

The fullness of Christ is for our use, and we 
receive from Him all we will use in living and 
bearing fruit. The two olive trees seen, in the 
vision by the prophet Zacheriah, standing on 
either side of the golden candlestick pouring 
their golden oil through seven golden pipes 


308 


The New Life in Christ. 


into the bowl of the lamp, represent the per¬ 
fect communication between Christ and be¬ 
lievers. As the flow of oil from the living 
trees was perpetual, so through the perfect 
union of faith flows the perpetual supply of 
life, righteousness, power, and graces of the 
Spirit as the believer will receive and use. 
The burning lamp was kept refilled as the 
flame consumed the oil; and so we may receive 
from Christ grace and strength as we have 
need. 

Miss Hattie Warner: “I am so thankful 
that I have not only learned to yield myself 
up to God, and give up all for Christ, but have 
also learned to trust Him and receive from 
His infinite fullness as needed, that I may bear 
fruit to the glory of the Father. I will remem¬ 
ber the two living trees pouring their oil into 
the burning lamp as needed. It is a glorious 
truth.” 

“These, are the two anointed ones.” The 
seven pipes represent the perfect communica¬ 
tion between the believer and Christ, and the 
constant supply of His fullness to the needs of 
believers. Through this union of faith flows 
the life of Christ. He is our life, and from Him 
we have eternal life and may cease to thirst 
and continue revived all the time. The flame 


All Things New. 


309 


of the lamp never grew dim; and no more may 
our spiritual life and joys grow dim or die out. 

Through this perfect union of faith with 
Christ we may receive the fullness of the per¬ 
fect righteousness of Christ, by which we are 
justified and made righteous in Him as He is 
righteous. So also may perpetually flow to us 
the atoning merit of the blood of Christ: by 
which the soul is washed with all its thoughts, 
words and acts, and made fit for the Lord’s 
service. By the same means we may receive 
of Christ’s infinite power to enable us to live, 
work and always triumph in Him. 

Mack Norman : “By yielding my life and 
will up to God, and by constant faith in Christ, 
I find that I may receive the power and graces 
of the Holy Spirit in answer to prayer as I 
never realized before.” 

The Holy Spirit dwells in every believer, 
and the union is also perfect; and by believing 
prayer, and yielding up wholly to Him, we 
may receive of His fullness also. He quickens 
into life and resurrects into spiritual life, and 
He also fills us with spirituality and spiritual 
power. He fills us with the fullness of love, 
joy and peace, and all the other blessed spirit¬ 
ual experiences. These may be received perpet- 


310 


The New Life in Christ. 


ually as the oil flowed continually as it was 
needed for use. 

By yielding ourselves up to the indwelling 
Spirit, through faith and prayer, we may be 
filled with such love and perfect peace as will 
casft out selfishness and still the raging tem¬ 
pest of anxiety and worry. He will also fill 
us with joy in God; the joy of Christ may re¬ 
main in us, and our joy be full. 

Mack Norman : “I have learned in my ex¬ 
perience the difference between surrender to 
God, and yielding one’s self up to Him. The un¬ 
saved may surrender to Him as an enemy when 
overpowered; but a Christian should yield him¬ 
self up to God as a dear child, and yield his 
will and members as instruments of righteous¬ 
ness.” 

There is great difference between the two 
acts; the one may be compulsory, while the 
other implies a willing, voluntary act. When 
one yields his will up to God’s will, all opposi¬ 
tion is ended; and when the life and members 
are yielded up to God there will be peace and 
harmony, and anxiety and worry will cease.” 

Burt Norman : “Yielding myself up to God 
in business, has saved me from business wor¬ 
ries and anxieties. It is a great pleasure for 


All Things Neiv. 


311 


me to regard myself as the Lord’s own servant, 
dependent upon Him for all I have and do, and 
feel that my business enterprises are not sep¬ 
arate from Him and His service. I gladly set 
apart a given portion of the income for the 
special use of His kingdom, while I regard all 
I possess as subject to His will and govern¬ 
ment.” 

Such yielding up to God in business will al¬ 
ways insure success. It may not be the sure 
means of making money; but it will be the 
sure means of preventing business or money¬ 
making from becoming a curse or hindrance 
in the Christian life. In this way the secular 
becomes sacred, and the common labor and 
the business of life is glorified by the presence 
and blessings of God. Like Peter’s casting a 
hook in the sea for fish was glorified by the 
Lord’s giving him one with the tax money in 
its mouth; and the miraculous catch when the 
Lord commanded him to cast his net on the 
right side of the ship. 

Miss Mary Long: “I am filled with wonder 
as I think of that vision of the prophet, where 
the two living trees poured their oil into the 
burning lamp, keeping it supplied with all it 
would use. It is such a glorious fact that the 
believer has the fullness of a living Savior to 


312 . 


The New Life in Christ. 


supply his needs! It seems that the only limit 
of results in the believer’s life consists in the 
use he makes of these supplies. All the oil the 
lamp will consume is supplied, and so we may 
have all the grace and power we will use sup¬ 
plied to us. I shall try to never lose sight of 
this glorious fact.” 

There is fullness of life in Christ, and He 
is our righteousness as well as the source of 
our power. By oneness with Him, we receive 
through faith of His infinite fullness and are 
complete in Him. His strength is made per¬ 
fect in our weakness, and we have in Him per¬ 
fect access to the Father’s throne of grace in 
heaven, and may obtain from Him overcoming 
grace and power to always triumph in Christ. 

Will Harrison: “It is wonderful how com¬ 
pletely all things have become new in the lives 
of new creatures in Christ. From children of 
wrath they are the children of God, heirs of 
God and joint heirs with Christ. Supreme love 
to God, combined with the deepest gratitude 
to Christ, move them to please Him by know¬ 
ing and doing all He commands in His Word.” 

A life under these influences must of neces¬ 
sity be a new life; and they produce an entire¬ 
ly new life to the full extent they are allowed 


All Things Neiv. 


313 


to exercise their power in the life. Hence we 
are commanded to yield ourselves up to God 
as dear children and our members as instru¬ 
ments of righteousness. 

The .Holy Spirit dwells in all new creatures 
in order that He may make them like Christ; 
and they are to abide in Christ and live by His 
life, grace and power. A life filled and con¬ 
trolled by these new forces will be entirely 
new. 

Neil Johnson: “There are so many pro¬ 
fessed Christians who live in sin, and excuse 
themselves by saying, that there are none per¬ 
fect, and they simply cannot help doing such 
things. If these are new creatures, they seem 
to know so little of the saving and keeping 
power of Christ.” 

They evidently are depending upon them¬ 
selves and not on Christ. Apart from Christ 
we can do nothing; and we have no right to 
present our poor failures to the world as ex¬ 
amples of what Christ can do to save and pur¬ 
ify and perfect our lives. His power is made 
perfect in our weakness, and He can make us 
able to live sober, clean, pure lives. When we 
let Christ live in us, He will do the work; and 
our new life will manifest to others that He is 


314 The New Life in Christ. 

able to save unto the uttermost all who come 
to God through Him. 

Albert Edwards : “Since we live by the life, 
righteousness and power of Christ, and man¬ 
ifest in our lives what He can do to make us 
holy, how is it that He does not make us abso¬ 
lutely sinless? What hinders such an one 
from reaching sinless perfection ?” 

The believer, having the absolute righteous¬ 
ness of Christ placed to his account, is regard¬ 
ed and treated in Christ as though he were sin¬ 
less. Yet while he is here in the flesh he is con¬ 
stantly under the pollutions of the flesh. The 
old Adam is never entirely eliminated from this 
life, and our best acts, thoughts and feelings 
need cleansing by the atoning blood of Christ 
to make them fit to come before God. The car¬ 
nal mind is enmity against God, and is itself 
sin. This nature, called the flesh, is in the en¬ 
tire earth life of believers, and wages perpetual 
warfare with his new nature. We are to mor¬ 
tify and put off this fleshly mind and nature, 
and keep it under by the power of Christ, 
which is sufficient for us. No one who is not 
blinded to his true condition can ever feel that 
his life is so perfect that any part of it does 
not need the cleansing power of the atoning 
blood of .Christ. 


All Things New. 


315 


Mack Norman : “To what extent may we 
be saved by the power of Christ, who lives in 
us, from actual wrong-doing? If He can keep 
us from anger, wrath, drunkenness, lying and 
other like sins, how free may we be made from 
all actual wrong-doing?” 

I am not able to say, because the heart, na¬ 
ture and thoughts constitute so large a part 
of our sinning that we cannot discriminate be¬ 
tween them. Wrong motives, purposes and 
feelings spoil many acts which otherwise would 
be good. Spiritual pride, selfishness, lack of 
love and unbelief are examples of inward 
wrongs. Yet we can by the Spirit mortify the 
deeds of the body and live not after the flesh, 
but after the Spirit. If we add to our faith 
virtue, knowledge, patience, and all the other 
graces of the Spirit, we shall fall into gross 
sins, but will live an obedient and useful life. 
Never lose sight of the fact, that this life is 
to be lived by faith in Christ; and that this 
same faith in Christ keeps you under the power 
of His atoning blood, by which you are justified, 
have peace with God and live free from all con¬ 
scious condemnation. 

Neil Johnson: “Some church members 
seem to feel that they are licensed to give way 
to anger, get drunk, and do all kinds of wrong 


316 


The New Life in Christ. 


things simply because they cannot live a sinless 
and absolutely holy life. Others claim that 
they cannot help doing these things, and seem 
to feel that they are excused from obtaining 
help from Christ by which they might over¬ 
come.” 

Christians are witnesses to the world of the 
saving power of Christ. Without Him we can 
do nothing. He gives us the victory, and God 
makes us always to triumph in Him. If we 
abide in Him and. He in us, we receive of his 
infinite and almighty strength, which is suf¬ 
ficient for all our needs. He can enable us to 
put off the old man with his deeds, and 
put on the new man and manifest to the world 
that Christ can save sinners, and cleanse their 
lives, and keep them by His mighty power. 
They ought to be true witnesses for Him of His 
mighty saving power, and manifest to all how 
fully He can save, and keep the saved from the 
power of sin. 

Miss Mary Long: “New creatures ought 
not only to manifest in their lives the ability 
of Christ to save and keep them from sin; but 
they ought also to manifest the fact that they 
count Christ worthy of the very best they have 
and can do and be,” 


All Things New . 


317 


Mary saved her box of costly ointment and 
poured it upon Christ to anoint Him for His 
burial, and some said in indignation: “Why 
this waste?’’ But Jesus said: “Let her alone; 
she hath wrought a good work upon me. She 
is come aforetime to anoint my body for the 
burying.” She saved her very best and freely 
gave it to Jesus. She had heard Him tell that 
He was to die at Jerusalem for us; and in 
deepest love she had done what she could to 
manifest her sympathy for His sufferings and 
interest in them. Now since he has died for us, 
and delivered us from death, we should gladly 
give our best to spread His kingdom over the 
world and make the results of His death mani¬ 
fest to all. He deserves the very best of all, 
and none should ever feel that anything is 
wasted that is given to Christ. 


LESSSON XXIV. 


FOREVER WITH THE LORD. 

HE Lord Himself shall descend from 
heaven with a shout, with the voice of the 
archangel, and with the trump of God; 
and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 
then we which are alive and remain shall be 
caught up together with them in the clouds, 
to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we 
ever be with the Lord.”—1 Thess. 4:16, 17. 

“We know that, when He shall appear, we 
shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He 
is.”—1 John 3:2. 

“In thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy 
right hand there are pleasures forevermore.” 
—Ps. 16:11. 



Neil Johnson : “It is thought by many that 
we are not saved till Christ comes at the end 
of time; but that will be the entering of the 
saved upon their eternal inheritance. It will 
certainly be a great and glorious thing for all 
the saved to go with Christ to the Father’s 
house, and be forever with the Lord.” 

318 


Forever With the Lord. 


319 


New creatures in Christ have a most glorious 
destiny awaiting them, when they shall see the 
Lord, shall be like Him, and shall be with Him 
forever. They are already saved with an eter¬ 
nal salvation, are justified in Christ for time 
and for eternity; for they shall never come into 
condemnation, and they now have eternal life 
in Christ. “The gift of God is eternal life 
through Jesus Christ our Lord.” “He that 
heareth my word, and believeth on Him that 
sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not 
come into condemnation, but is passed from 
death unto life.” “There is therefore now no 
condemnation to them which are in Christ 
Jesus.” “Giving thanks unto the Father, 
which hath made us meet to be partakers of 
the inheritance of the saints in light.” 

Will Harrison: “It is a blessed fact that 
all believers in Christ are made meet to be par¬ 
takers of the inheritance of the saints in glory 
by simply believing in Christ. All who believe 
in Christ are saved by grace through faith, and 
have eternal life; but what about their being 
conformed to the likeness of Christ, and being 
fully sanctified?” 

“But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who 
of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteous¬ 
ness, and sanctification, and redemption.” Be- 


320 


The Neiv Life in Christ. 


lievers have all these blessings in Christ from 
the Father, “who hath delivered us from the 
power of darkness, and hath translated us into 
the kingdom of His dear Son: in whom we have 
redemption through His blood, even the forgive¬ 
ness of sins.” 

God, the Supreme Judge of the universe, just¬ 
ifies believers in Christ through the righteous¬ 
ness and merit of the atoning death of Christ; 
and none can condemn. Christ suffered the 
punishment of their sins in His own body on 
the tree, and made full satisfaction for them, 
and they are forever safe in Christ. 

Miss Mary Long: “I have met with many 
truths new to me; but with none more start¬ 
lingly so than this one, that the new creature is 
made fit to share in the inheritance of the 
saints in glory. I have heard so much about 
Christians working their way to heaven, and 
hoping to get there if they could only hold out 
faithfully to the end.” 

All new creatures are the children of God, 
and were made meet for heaven when they were 
born again and were received of God in Christ. 
If death should come to them, as it did to the 
thief on the cross, immediately after they were 
made new creatures, they would be ready to 
enter upon the inheritance of the saints in 


Forever With the Lord. 


321 


light. They have been made meet for this glo¬ 
rious inheritance, because they no longer be¬ 
long to the kingdom of darkness, but have been 
translated into the kingdom of God by the Holy 
Spirit. They were redeemed by the precious 
blood of Christ, and through faith in Him they 
are justified from all things, and have the for¬ 
giveness of their sins, peace with God, and re¬ 
joice in hope of the glory of God. 

Mack Norman : “How are believers to ob¬ 
tain the presence and indwelling of the Holy 
Spirit? and how may they obtain in their lives 
and characters the fruits of the Spirit?” 

“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, 
and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” 
“Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, 
which is in you.” 

When the Holy Spirit makes sinners new 
creatures, He takes up His abode in them, and 
leads, comforts, intercedes for them, guides 
them by the Word of God into all truth, and 
sanctifies and fashions them into the likeness 
of Christ. He continues the work commenced 
in regeneration, and He will finally present 
them holy, unblamable and unreproachable be¬ 
fore the presence of God. 

Mack Norman : “What do you think is the 
reason why some Christians are more spirit- 

la 


322 


The New Life in Christ. 


ually minded and have more fruits of the 
Spirit in their lives than others? Do new 
creatures need a second work of the Spirit, a 
‘Pentecostal baptism’ to prepare them for serv¬ 
ice and for true spiritual living?” 

I am glad you asked this question! We are 
wholly dependent upon the Holy Spirit for 
spiritual life, power, growth, sanctification, and 
all spiritual progress and success. In the 
Prophecy of Ezekiel God says of the new creat¬ 
ure: “A new heart also will I give you, and a 
new spirit will I put within you; and I will 
take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and 
I will give you an heart of flesh.” In Hebrews 
He says: “I will put my laws into their mind, 
and write them in their hearts, and I will be 
to them a God, and they shall be to me a peo¬ 
ple.” The Holy Spirit dwells in these new 
creatures, and develops the new natures He 
has imparted till He forms- the life entirely 
new, and makes them in the resurrection mom 
entirely like Christ in His-glorifled body. 

The Holy Spirit has already been given, and 
is in the world in all believers. He made them 
new creatures, is leading, comforting, sancti¬ 
fying them, and continuing the work He began 
when He regenerated them. Believers are com¬ 
manded to “grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, 
whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemp- 


Forever With the Lord. 


323 


tion.” “If any man have not the Spirit of 
Christ, he is none of His.” “As many as are 
led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of 
God.” “If ye through the Spirit do mortify 
the body, ye shall live.” “Walk in the Spirit, 
and ye shall not fulfil the lusts of the flesh.” 
“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in 
the Spirit.” If we would enjoy the blessings 
of the Spirit, we should yield ourselves up to 
Him, to be led by Him, to walk in the Spirit, 
and be very careful not to grieve Him. If any 
have not the Spirit of Christ they are none of 
His, and they that are led by the Spirit are the 
sons of God; so we must yield to the leading of 
the Spirit and seek His help by prayer. “How 
much more shall your Heavenly Father give 
the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?” 

Miss Mary Long : “Why are Christians left so 
long on earth after they have been made meet 
for heaven? I have often heard it said, that 
they would be taken home as soon as they were, 
ready to go.” 

Jesus said: “I am no more in the world, but 
these are in the world, and I come to thee;” 
“as thou hast sent me into the world, even so 
have I also sent them into the world.” While 
they are here in the world they are the chil¬ 
dren of God, and represent Christ; and they 


324 


The New Life in Christ. 


are to continue His work which He begun. 
They are “heirs of God, and joint heirs with 
Christ;” “to an inheritance incorruptible and 
undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved 
in heaven for you, who are kept by the power 
of God unto salvation ready to be revealed in 
the last time.” But while they are in the 
body they may have heaviness through manifold 
trials; “That the trials of your faith, being 
much more precious than of gold that perisheth, 
though it be tried by fire, might be found unto 
praise and honor and glory at the appearing of 
Jesus Christ.” So they are here that they may 
honor God and obtain a glorious reward by 
their glad and happy obedience. 

They are here also for the good of others, 
that by the preaching of the gospel they may 
bring them to Christ. As the light of the 
world and the salt of the earth, they are to “go 
into all the w T orld and preach the gospel to 
every creature;” and Jesus says, “Lo, I am 
with you filway, even unto the end of the 
world.” In this world they are with the Lord, 
and He is with them till they leave the world. 

Neil Johnson : “When the Lord Jesus shall 
come in His glory, and all the Holy angels with 
Him, and seated upon the throne of His glory, 
His voice calls the dead from their graves; and 
when all the dead in Christ have been raised, 


Forever With the Lord. 


325 


and we who are alive shall be caught up with 
them in the clouds to meet Him, it will be a 
time of great glory to all new creatures! It 
will not be then to drop this robe of flesh and 
rise to seize the everlasting prize; but this 
body of flesh shall be changed, and be made 
an immortal, incorruptible, spiritual body, 
in which the pure, glorified spirit shall dwell 
forever. I delight to think of that glorious 
morn, and it reconciles me to the loss of those 
who are so dear to me in the world, and it also 
makes me love my Lord more, and determines 
me to try to be more faithful in His service.” 

In that great resurrection morning, when all 
who are new creatures shall hear the voice of 
Christ, and come forth alive again, they shall 
rise to die no more. Their bodies shall be 
raised spiritual, incorruptible, undying, glo¬ 
rious bgdies; and their glorified spirits and 
new bodies, with all of the old fleshly nature 
and the body of sin forever gone, shall be with¬ 
out spot or wrinkle or any such thing. They 
shall be blameless in His sight, and without 
blemish before the presence of His glory. Then 
shall be brought to pass the saying: “Death 
is swallowed up in victory.” It will truly* be 
a time of great glory to all the saved! What 
care they then for all their trials and labors 
passed? How happy then to remember that 


326 


The New Life in Christ. 


they loved and obeyed their Savior while upon 
the earth! and that they trusted Him for life 
and salvation, and from constraining love to' 
Christ they studied His word and obeyed it 
faithfully! To see Him who loved them, and 
died for them, to look into His own dear eyes 
and to feel that His own great heart is full of 
love to them, and that they love Him as they 
ought! To be With Him in His glory, and with 
all the holy angels, and with all the new creat¬ 
ures who have also been saved by His grace, 
and enter glory with them! This will be 
glorious indeed! Yes, we shall meet all those 
who have long gone before, we shall see them 
as they are, glorified, pure, more beloved than 
ever before, the blessed of the Father, the right¬ 
eous who have entered into life eternal, bear¬ 
ing the heavenly image of their glorified Lord; 
and we shall love them as we never loved 
them before in Christ our glorified Savior. 
The joy and bliss of that hour will far surpass 
all the joys of the past, and it will be increased 
and made perpetual with the Lord. 

Will Harrison: “If it will be such joy to 
meet the Lord in the air, and to meet all the 
redeemed and saved; what will it be to enter 
the New Jerusalem, the city of God that has 
foundations whose maker and builder is God; 
and enter the Father’s house into the home 


Forever With the Lord. 


327 


prepared for us by our Savior, and be forever 
with the Lord! Then to be forever in the pres¬ 
ence of the Lord, and know the fullness of joy 
in His love and service will be unspeakable 
bliss. When I think of being with the Lord, 
going where He goes, and entering into His 
joys, I am more willing to give up all for Him 
here in this world, and give myself more fully 
to know and do and suffer His holy will.” 

“He had respect unto the recompense of the 
reward.” It will truly be great enough to 
warrant our very best services. When the 
saved have been raised from the dead, and 
those who are alive have been changed and 
made pure, sinless, undying and are glorified; 
and they are all caught up together to meet 
the Lord in the air, then they shall be with 
Him forever. “He that sitteth on the throne 
shall dwell among them. They shall hunger 
no more, neither thirst any more, neither shall 
the sun light on them nor any heat. For the 
Lamb that is in the midst of the throne shall 
feed them, and shall lead them unto living 
fountains of waters; and God shall wipe away 
all tears from , their eyes.” Then they enter 
upon their eternal and glorious inheritance as 
joint heirs withChrist. There in the presence 
of God where there is fullness of joy, and 
pleasures evermore at His right hand, all new 


328 


The New Life in Christ. 


creatures, God’s holy children, shall enter up¬ 
on their new lives in their fullness. These new 
lives of the glorified saints shall continue in 
perfect purity, love, joy and bliss throughout 
an endless eternity. 

Miss Hattie Warner : “I once thought that 
an eternity of the same things with the same 
persons might grow monotonous, and we might 
not be so fully happy through all eternity. But 
I can begin to understand that the infinite love 
of God, and the infinite glory of His person, 
and the glory of heaven, will be enough to 
occupy all eternity; and the saved will have 
fullness of joy evermore.” 

We can never grow weary of heavenly joys; 
because God is infinite in His perfections, holi¬ 
ness and love, and all eternity can never ex¬ 
haust His power to please and fill His people 
with inexpressible joy. “In thy presence is 
fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are 
pleasures forever more.” Heaven is full of 
love. “God is love;” and all the saved are like 
Him in their natures. They loved God and 
walked in love while they were in the world, 
and they shall be made perfect in love in their 
eternal home. They shall see the King in His 
beauty, and be like Him; and they shall be 


Forever With the Lord . 


329 


fully satisfied when they awake in His like¬ 
ness. 

Neil Johnson : “Believers have been pre¬ 
destinated to be conformed to the likeness of 
Christ, that He might be the first-born among 
many brethren. It will be a great joy to be 
with Christ as His brethren in glory! It is 
the source of great happiness and strength to 
live in the glad hope of being one with Christ 
in heaven, as we are one with Him now in the 
world/’ 

Our greatest happiness and blessing comes 
now from being one with Him, and inasmuch 
as we are like Him, conformed to His likeness, 
His will, purpose and Word by His Spirit, to 
that extent are we pure, happy and useful. 
We do not always realize now how much we 
are like Christ; but in our Father’s house, our 
new lives will bloom into His perfect likeness, 
and will be so gloriously complete, that Christ 
will be glorified in them, and He will be “the 
first-born among many brethren.” Brethren 
in Christ, be faithful! With full purpose of 
heart cleave unto the Lord. Live new lives 
in Christ. A crown of life awaits you in glory. 

Mack Norman: “Reading the descriptions 
given of heaven in the Bible, I notice that the 


330 


The New Life in Christ. 


most costly and best things of earth are used 
to describe the outside of our eternal home. 
The streets are of gold, and the gates of pearl, 
and it is reasonable for us to decide that earth 
has nothing of sufficient value to tell us of 
what the home is built, or to describe the beau¬ 
ty of the inward building. We are told that, 
‘there shall be no more cursebut all the 
blight of sin shall be removed from their lives, 
and the Lord God shall dwell among them 
and be their light. The very best of it all it 
seems to me is the full, loving, glorious wel¬ 
come that awaits us from all those who dwell 
in the home.” 

The home of the saved is spoken of as a 
heavenly country, a city that hath foundations, 
whose walls are jasper with foundations of 
precious stones, and gates of pearls, and 
whose streets are of pure gold. The place is 
lighted by the presence of God and of our 
Savior Jesus Christ. The pure river of the 
water of life flows through it from out of the 
throne of God and of the Lamb, and in the 
midst of the street thereof, and on either side 
of the river, is the tree of life bearing twelve 
manner of fruits, yielding its fruit every 
month, and its leaves are for the healing of 
the nations. 


Forever With the Lord . 


331 


In that home there will be no night, no pain, 
no sorrow nor crying, and the inhabitants 
shall die no more. There the Lord dwells with 
them, and they shall be His people, and He 
shall be their God. The throne of God 
shall be there, and His servants shall serve 
Him; and they shall see His face and His 
name shall be in their foreheads, and they 
shall reign with Him forever and ever. “In 
thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right 
hand there are pleasures for evermore.” 

Miss Hattie Warner : “Oh, what music 
there must be in heaven! When all the ran¬ 
somed ones join in the grand new song of re¬ 
deeming love, and heavenly praise to God and 
Christ their Savior!” 

It must truly be grand and glorious when 
the redeemed out of every kindred, and tongue, 
and people and nation join in the song of 
praise to Christ, because He was slain and re¬ 
deemed them to God by His blood; and when 
this vast throng is joined by the voice of the 
many angels round about the throne, the num¬ 
ber of whom is “ten thousand times ten thou¬ 
sand, and thousands of thousands; saying with 
a loud voice, “worthy is the Lamb that was 
slain to receive power, riches, and wisdom, and 
strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing.” 


332 


The New Life in Christ. 


Their Alleluia of praise to God was like the 
voice of many waters, and as the voice of 
mighty thunderings, as they sang to the Lord 
God omnipotent who reigns over all. 

Will Harrison: “With Mack, I love to 
think of the glorious welcome that awaits all 
the saved, and of the final grand gathering at 
home of the whole family of God; and that 
they will all be gloriously perfect up there!” 

When the saved shall be presented to Christ, 
they shall be a glorious people without spot 
or wrinkle, as He reconciled them in the body 
through His death, to present them holy, and 
unblamable and unreprovable in His sight, and 
without blame before Him in love. They shall 
dwell with Him in His eternal home, share 
Hlis inheritance, behold His glory as He is 
glorified in them, and they in Him. They shall 
see Him as He is and shall be like Him; and 
shall be satisfied wdien they awake in His like¬ 
ness. 

There the saved enter upon the fullness of 
their new life in Christ in the eternal blessed¬ 
ness and glory of heaven. There they shall 
receive a crown of righteousness, a crown of 
life, and a crown of glory. “Father, I will that 
they also whom thou hast given me, be with 
me where I am; that they may behold my glory 


Forever With the Lord. 


333 


which thou hast given me.” “I go to prepare 
a place for you; and if I go and prepare a place 
for you I will come again and receive you unto 
myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” 
“Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invis¬ 
ible, the only wise God, be honor and glory for 
ever and ever. Amen,” 























SEP 16 1904 




✓ 

















* 


v. 


* 

















